Akabeko - Red Cow

Akabeko is a folk toy with a 400-year history, made of hariko (papier-mâché) in the shape of a cow with a bobbing head.
From Aizu in Fukushima Prefecture, in the northeastern Tōhoku region of Japan, its name translates as ‘red cow’ in the local dialect (aka is ‘red’ and beko is ‘cow’). Akabeko is not only a toy or an ornament, but a talisman of good fortune and health, as well as a symbol of the Aizu region. The lacquered toy is made out of two pieces – the body and the bobbing head and neck.