Maneki Neko

Maneki Neko (招き猫, literally "beckoning cat"), also known as "welcoming cat", "lucky cat", "money cat" or "fortune cat", is a common Japanese figurine. It is a lucky charm. This small statue is found in many Japanese shops,^[1] and it is also seen in some places outside Japan.

Maneki neko is usually painted as a Calico cat (Japanese Bobtail), but new colors has appeared recently (for example, white, red, black, pink, blue and gold). It usually has the right paw raised. Some of these statues have the left paw raised.

The statue commonly has a gold coin called a koban around the cat's neck.

Tokoname in Aichi Prefecture is Japan's top producer of Maneki neko.^[2]

1. ↑ Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Maneki Neko" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 606.
2. ↑ "Tokoname, Birthplace of Manekineko Lucky Cats" at Virtualtourist.com Archived 2013-06-08 at the Wayback Machine; excerpt, "About eighty percent of this type of cat figurines are produced in Tokoname...". Retrieved 2012-12-4.