Vintage Gump’s Hand Painted Japanese Hakata Royal Child Bisque Porcelain Figure

lovely Gump’s Japanese hand painted Hakata Royal Child Bisque Porcelain figurine in excellent vintage condition. Japanese Hakata dolls are the best known craft items from Fukuoka Prefecture, which lies in the north of the island of Kyushu. The origin of this local specialty goes back to around 1586-1608. In that year the feudal lord of Fukuoka, Nagamasa Kuroda, was having a new castle built. One day he noticed one of the workmen making dolls from the clay used for the palace's tile roof. The workmanship was so superb that the ruler employed the craftsman to make dolls and ornaments for the castle. Toward the end of the 19th century the craft blossomed from making folk toys to making decorative dolls intended to please the eye. In 1976 the art of Hakata dolls was recognised as a traditional national art by the Japanese Government. In addition, Gump’s is a famed high end department store and retail legend based out of San Francisco.