Koinobori: Japan’s Colorful Carp Streamers

An 1838 illustration of streets at Tango no Sekku from Tōto saijiki (Annual Record of the Eastern Capital). (Courtesy the National Diet Library)

An 1857 illustration from Andō Hiroshige’s Meisho Edo hyakkei (One Hundred Famous Views of Edo). (© Colbase)

Carp streamers flying in Ginza, Tokyo, in April 1965. (© Jiji)

Koinobori in a residential setting. (© Pixta)

Koinobori at Tokyo Tower. (© Pixta)