The Karatsu Kunchi Hikiyama Festival is an event held during the autumn festival of Karatsu Shrine.
Karatsu Hikiyama is a luxurious structure made of many layers of Japanese paper.
The oldest red lion in Katana Town is said to have been created by a person who saw the Gion Festival in Kyoto on his way back from a visit to Ise.
After that, each town created a lion, a helmet, a sea bream, a flying dragon, etc., and today there are 14 floats.
文政2年（1819）
文政7年（1824）
天保12年（1841）
弘化2年（1845）
弘化3年（1846）
明治2年（1869）
明治8年（1875）
明治9年（1876）
明治9年（1876）
弘化3年（1846）
弘化4年（1847）
元治元年（1864）
A mold is made of clay on the wooden frame, and approximately 100 to 200 sheets of washi paper, 1 to 3 cm thick, are pasted on top of it using warabi paste or astringent persimmon, the mold is removed, and the keel is assembled.
The base is made by hardening it with linen cloth and lacquer, the shape is adjusted with powdered lacquer, and finally colored lacquer is applied and finished with gold leaf.
The main body is supported by a single pillar on a four-wheeled wooden trolley.
The production period varies depending on the town, but it is said to have taken 3 to 6 years.