Why is there a whale object (pictured) on the street corner of Ningyocho?
A long time ago, the whole area of Ningyocho was the sea, and I thought that it was just a monument where whales were caught, but there was also the following episode about the relationship between dolls and whales.
In the Edo period, in Ningyocho, in addition to the Edo Kabuki huts called Ichimura-za and Nakamura-za, there were also huts such as Yukiza, a puppeteer from puppet ballad drama, and Satsuma-za, a puppeteer who produced dolls.
These puppeteers used elastic whale beards on the spring of the puppet doll to enable subtle neck movements, which can be said to be the life of the doll.
And the current name of Ningyocho became the official place name of Ningyocho in 1933, because there were many shops selling puppeteers, Hina doll, and handmade goods that make these dolls.
