Okayama, Japan’s “Maneki-neko Museum” – 700 collectibles fill a century-old house

▲ The Maneki-neko Museum is located inside a century-old house.

Reported and photographed by You t
ru / Okayama, Japan

Among Japan’s many lucky charms, the “maneki-neko” (beckoning cat) holds an important place. With its adorable and endearing appearance, and varying meanings based on color and gesture, it is one of the most beloved lucky home decorations that Japanese people enjoy collecting.In the mountains about a 30-minute drive from downtown Okayama, there is a museum housing over 700 maneki-neko figures, hidden amidst lush greenery. It is a magical, mystical spot that the Japanese make a point to visit during the New Year.


▲ Over 400 maneki-neko figures of various sizes and shapes.


Established in 1994, the Maneki-neko Museum was originally collected by the father of Chūmei Hitoko, who now works as a curator at the museum. Chūmei Hitoko said her father loved cats and would buy cat decorations wherever he traveled, but he especially liked collecting maneki-neko because of their unique and cute image. After years of collecting, the number grew so large that he wanted to share them with more people, leading to the creation of the “Maneki-neko Museum.”

The earliest “Maneki-neko Museum” was just a small rented room next to a mountain temple for displays. But as more people learned about it and the collection continued to grow, the museum was moved to a larger space in an old mountain house. Currently, the “Maneki-neko Museum” has two buildings: the main building for displays, and a separate building used for prayers and allowing visitors to paint their own maneki-neko.

The main building of the “Maneki-neko Museum” displays up to 700 maneki-neko figures. All are located on the second floor of the main building, including maneki-neko from various parts of Japan, as well as those specially ordered or collected from overseas. The entire space is filled with maneki-neko of diverse appearances, creating a quite spectacular sight.


▲ You can see all kinds of maneki-neko from different regions here.




Among them, the gold-leaf maneki-neko is especially favored by Chūmei Hitoko. Its entire body is coated in gold and weighs 100 kilograms, making it the main visual focus of the display area. In the exhibition space, there is also a maneki-neko in a lying-down pose, specially made and brought from Bali, which is another highlight.