the real thing...

I thought I should post a video of the actual Karakuri I am trying to make a replica of. I have a video of the machine in question that I got up close and personal during my visit to the Karakuri Museum in northern Nagoya last year. 

the Karakuri museum in Inuyama, Nagoya.

The Karakuri Museum is located in the northern part of Nagoya, just in the shadow of Inuyama Castle. You have to take a 20 minute train from downtown Nagoya to get there, but it's well worth it. The neighborhood around the castle is stunning, and very old fashioned.  In the Spring there is an amazing Karakuri float festival that involves various wooden automaton ( http://www.japan-photo.de/e-inuya-fest.htm ) acting out traditional stories on top of two story high floats. I hope to be there one year for this, it would be amazing!

Inuyama Castle

model of a festival float


Anyway, here's a link to the vid :  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kSWI5hKOpMs (Blogspot's video posting doesn't seem to be working today...)

The demonstration was put on by a fellow who came to the museum (from another cultural museum close by) specially for my wife and I. The admission person at the front desk made a phone call after my wife explained 'my husband is crazy about this stuff, any chance for a demonstration?" He was over in five minutes and spent a half hour or so showing various festival dolls in motion. It was a very generous gesture and after it was all said and done, we didn't catch his name. Embarrassing! The giri on that is huge so I better sort that out!