Gosho Ningyo generally represent fat, happy babies in a simplified infantile form. A heavy coat of gofun to achieve the perfectly white skin so prized in Japan seals them. They have minimal painted facial features - just the essential amount of detail ("no more - no less") to capture the essence of the child. Instead of switching to the popular inserted glass eyes, gosho artists maintained the spirit of these dolls by keeping the traditional black inked eye treatment.

Kyoto National Museum states that these white, rounded, chubby figures are thought to have been influenced by the naked children Saga dolls (more about saga ningyo).

There are many names associated with gosho dolls: "Good luck dolls", shira-kiku "white chrysanthemum", shirajishi-ningyo "white flesh doll", zudai "large head", or Izukura ningyo which refers to a Osaka doll dealer. The term "gosho" can be translated "from the Imperial Palace" since they were originally created by doll makers in Kyoto specifically to be gifts from the Imperial household to their special visitors. The recipients treasured these. The merchant class wanted to emulate this royal gift giving ritual - a status symbol. Thus the practice of giving gosho ningyo as special meaningful gifts spread throughout Japan.
 

Nine categories of Gosho Ningyo as devised by Mr. Ken Kirihata of Kyoto National Museum and Timothy Mertel in his article about the fabulous Ayervais Gosho Ningyo collection: Gift Dolls  Crawling Dolls  Good luck Dolls  Dressed and Standing Dolls  Young Prince and Princess Dolls  "Living Dolls"  Thematic Dolls  Hinged Leg Dolls  Mechanical Dolls  I hope to get illustrations of each type in time. Wish me luck here.

"These chubby, semi-nude child figures are wonderful in their artistry and the best of these were carved out of paulownia wood and then treated to up to seven layers of gofun. But even with so many layers, it is still the initial wood carving that gives the gosho its features. Wood composite bases were also used in the more cheaply made dolls."  from Alan Pate, L'Asie Exotique This crawling haihai style with a rider is one of the more sought after of the many gosho styles Crawling Gosho Ningyo Edo period c. 1800 Photo thanks to L'Asie Exotique

Gosho Dolls (Playing Horse) Edo Period, 19th C (Kyoto National Museum)

Gosho Doll (Playing the Drum) Edo Period, 19th C (Kyoto National Museum)

Good luck Gosho Ningyo

Good luck Gosho Ningyo c. 1800 Photo thanks to L'Asie Exotique

Ko fuku no inori gosho ningyo (good luck and prayer palace doll) of a kneeling boy holding a mask of Okame, the goddess of merriment in front of him as a wish for happiness. It is crafted of kiri wood, covered in gofun, with an applied embroidered silk crepe bib and painted features. Good luck gosho dolls will typically hold some symbolic object or toy which will give clues to the wishes extended by these gift dolls. Cracking is noted in the face and back. Cracking in the gofun layer can be expected in such an old wood dolls.

Good luck Gosho Ningyo c. 1850 from the collection of J.A.D.E.members, Marvin and Flora Herring

The figure pictured here is a 9-1/2" Good Luck Gosho Ningyo depicting Ebisu, God of luck and good fishing, as a child sitting on his knees atop a red pillow. He is wearing a golden Eboshi hat, red shirt and skirt and holding a gold finned black carp. Polished white gofun coats the carved wood.  Good luck Gosho Ningyo c. 1850 full front view | back view Gosho Dolls (Seven Gods of Good Luck) Edo Period, 19th C (Kyoto National Museum)

Dressed Gosho Ningyo

Gosho Ningyo c. 1850

This 13" gosho ningyo (rare size for this genre) wears a simple white "court style" kimono gradually dyed white to purple, appliquéd with a delicate gold leafed branch design, fronted with red pompoms. She is solidly carved in a kneeling position. She has the same stature as a hinged leg ningyo sitting in the kneeling position, but the owner assured me that she is not hinged.  The polished gofun coated wood carving is very subtle. The delicacy of the carving is more noticeable on the 3/4 view of her face. She sits on a shallow wooden base that was provided by the owner - the base is not part of the original presentation of the doll. 3/4 view of face  from the collection of J.A.D.E. members, Marvin and Flora Herring

"Living" (Ichimatsu) Gosho Ningyo

need a photo

The "Living" Gosho Ningyo were intended for play. They had moveable arms and legs and occasionally pivoting heads. Some had hinged legs (3-fold dolls or Mitsu-ore) allowing the doll to stand, sit or kneel. They had changeable outfits, toys and accessories. This doll evolved into what is known as the ichimatsu-type doll. Ichimatsu dolls were created to be played with and are more realistically portrayed.

Mechanical Gosho Ningyo - Karakuri Gosho Ningyo

need a photo

Gosho Ningyo occasionally have mechanically animated parts.

More information on the Net about Gosho Ningyo:

• Exibit of Japanese Dolls March 3-April 4, 1999 at the Kyoto National Museum - this exhibit displayed many types of gosho ningyo. The importance of Gosho ninygo to this region of Japan is explained in their description of gosho ningyo, "Gosho dolls perhaps best represent the city of Kyoto. Indeed, the word Gosho itself refers to the Imperial Palace in the center of this ancient capital. A plump and cherubic form, an oversized head, and satiny white skin made from highly polished layers of gofun characterize these childlike figures."
• Japanese American Doll Enthusiasts (J.A.D.E.) - Gosho ningyo is such a favorite of so many JADE members that this organization uses a drawing of one of these dolls as their logo: "JADE's Logo: Gosho Ebisu - J.A.D.E.'s logo depicts a drawing of a "Gosho Ningyo" representing Ebisu, a god of good fortune who is holding a red sea bream. We selected this as a representative for our club as we certainly hope for good fortune!"