めんたい重だより

Yanagawa City is located in the southwest of the Chikugo region of Fukuoka Prefecture. On the first annual celebration of a girl's birthday, people pray for the child's healthy growth.
It is a custom that has existed since the Edo period to decorate the stage with cute "sagemon" and celebrate in a grand manner.
Every year from February 11th to April 3rd, the Yanagawa Doll Festival Sagemon Tour is held, and the town is decorated with sagemon.

"Sagemon" is a traditional craft of Yanagawa that combines cloth crafts such as dolls and animals with Yanagawa balls decorated with beautiful patterns, and each one is made by hand.
Seven pieces are tied in seven rows, totaling 49. In an age where the average life expectancy is said to be 50 years, this represents the wish for someone to live even one year longer.
It is also customary to display it with two large Yanagawa balls hanging from the center.

Upper middle row // Flying things and mountain things (e.g. butterflies, cicadas, cherry blossoms, plum blossoms)
Middle and lower row // Underwater objects, animals, and dolls (e.g. goldfish, rabbits, and turtles)
Bottom row // Crawling doll, Mari Yanagawa

The order in which they are hung is also fixed, and each motif represents wishes for happiness, health, freedom from illness, good fortune, and the like.

During the Sagemon Tour, the area is bustling with tourists. On Sunday, March 16th, the "Ohinasama Water Parade" is held, where you can enjoy the sight of young children in their finest attire and the Sagemon decorations reflected on the river's surface. There are also other events such as the "Sagemon Yanagawa Mari Contest" and "Yanagawa Kimono Weather," so there is plenty to see.