Ahead of the New Year, a gigantic kadomatsu with a height of about 14 meters has appeared at a shrine in Unzen City, Nagasaki Prefecture.
Tachibana Shrine, located in Chijiishi-cho, Unzen City, has been displaying a huge kadomatsu at the end of the year for over 20 years.
An executive committee made up of local volunteers has been preparing for about a month, and on the 25th of this month, the kadomatsu was completed by tying the straw wrapped around the base with a rope and fixing it.
The kadomatsu is about 14 meters high, made of 48 bamboo sticks, and the base is decorated with red berries that are said to bring good luck.
On this day, local junior high school students performed mikagura, and the gun corps shot matchlocks into the sky to celebrate the completion.
A parent and child who visited from Fukuoka said, "I was surprised at how splendid it was. I was lucky to see such a big kadomatsu when I happened to pass by. It looks like there will be good things next year."
Masaki Tachibana, the chief priest of Tachibana Shrine, said, ``This year was a year of disasters and wars, but next year, I wanted everyone to be happy and healthy, so I made this kadomatsu with the local people. I was talking.
The giant kadomatsu of Tachibana Shrine will be displayed until February 11 next year to welcome visitors.