Daruma doll
A round red papier-mâché doll that always rights itself when knocked over.
The Daruma doll represents the monk Bodhidharma and became a good-luck symbol in the Edo period. It shows how a simple physical principle became a cultural symbol. Examples are in the Tokyo National Museum and the British Museum.
Materials: Papier-mâché, clay weight, paint
Manufacture: Paper was pressed into a mould over a weight in the base, dried and painted red.
The round form without arms or legs and the heavy base.
The eyes often left blank – one filled in when making a wish, the other when it comes true.