ONTAYAKI /Ontayaki

A kiln was opened in Hita City, Oita Prefecture in 1705, and since then, the culture and manufacturing methods of 10 kilns have been passed down from generation to generation to this day. At the beginning of the Showa era, Soetsu Yanagi, the founder of the folk art movement, praised ONTAYAKI and popularized it, and it has now been designated as a national important intangible cultural property as a representative folk art of Japan. It has unique decorations called ``tobi plane'' and ``uchibakeme'' and has been loved by people since ancient times as a vessel for everyday use.