Shachihoko of Himeji Castle

On the roof of Himeji Castle, a lot of roof tiles imitating an imaginary sea animal like a fish with a scary tiger face has been posted.

This fish statue is a decoration called Shachihoko,it is also a symbol for fire prevention. People thought that this fish would spout water out of his mouth in case of fire.

There are 11 fish statues of different sizes on the roof of Main Keep. A couple of fish statues on the top roof are the largest among them.

In the repair work of Main Keep for every few decades, we will replace the tiles damaged by aged deterioration etc. with new ones.

Newly completed	Heisei period	New one on main roof
Small one	Main Keep

The size of the largest one.

Height	186cm
Weight	gross	278kg
	body	202kg
	caudal fin	42kg
	fin(above)	7kg×2pieces
	fin(bottom)	10kg×2pieces

Three generations

The photo shows damaged Shachihoko tiles,three generations.

Edo period

Meiji period

Showa period

Shachihoko statues

Shachihoko statues are also exhibited on the streets of Himeji. You can see it nearby.

Shiromidai Park	Otemae street	Otemae street
Jonai Library	Jonai Library	Unga Park
Police Station

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