Yame Lantern Festival — 300-Year-Old Paper Lanterns

The Yame Lantern Festival, held annually in mid-November on the grounds of Yame Hachimangu Shrine, is a gathering of over 250 traditional wagasa (oil-paper parasols) and massive chochin (hanging lanterns) made by the handful of surviving Yame paper craftsmen. Yame is the last place in Japan with an active manufacturing tradition for the enormous 'giant paper lanterns' (ogutsuna odori chochin) used in traditional bon dances — some exceeding 2 meters in diameter, assembled from hand-lacquered bamboo frames and hand-stretched washi paper.