THE HISTORY OF OKIKKU DOLLS

long after a girl who used to play with it, is a 40-centimeter (16-in) tall kimono-clad figure with eyes like black beads - and the hair that grows.

Okiku doll illustration by Shohei Otomo
Okiku doll has lived in the temple in the city Mannenji Iwamizawa (Hokkaido prefecture) since 1938. According to the temples, traditional doll originally had short cropped hair, but over time it has grown to about 25 centimeters (10 in) long, up to the doll's knee. Although the hair regularly trimmed, it was reported continues to grow back.
It is said that the doll was originally purchased in 1918 by a young 17-year-old named Eikichi Suzuki during a visit to Sapporo to marine exhibits. He bought the doll on the Tanuki-koji - the famous shopping street in Sapporo - as a souvenir for the 2-year sister, Okiku. The family had placed the doll in the household altar and prayed for every day to commemorate Okiku.





Okiku Mannenji doll in the temple [via]
No one was ever able to fully explain why the doll's hair continues to grow. However, one of the scientific examination of the doll's hair is supposed to conclude that that a young child.



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