Guardians

I am digressing again, but one of the charming features of Okinawa are the shisa which guard the entrances to most homes.  Traditionally these lion figures were mounted on rooftops, but now people place them at either side of their driveways.  The shot above shows a traditional Okinawan style house.  There are no wooden ones left on this island, but there are some made of coral block walls.  Most are concrete block.  If you look closely you can see the shisa on the roof.

The modern ones range in size and feature glazing, etc.  Some of the old ones are basic unglazed fired pottery.  When there are in pairs one lion always has its mouth closed while the other one's is open.

This old one is my favorite.