Wooden cart, 28 x 18 inches, commemorating the 1988 Kishiwada Danjiri Matsuri (Float Festival). Kishiwada is an old castle town south of Osaka and hosts this annual festival. Elaborately decorated carts called danjiri are pulled through the streets. Each one carries an orchestra and a person called daikugata who performs an expressive dance on the roof of the float. It dates back to the 18th century when the lord of the castle started it as a token of gratitude for a bumper crop. Donated by Noboru Hara, Mayor of Kishiwada City, Japan.