16th Annual Smithsonian Magazine Photo Contest People
Seven Brave Men Performing A Dance

In Iida City, Nagano Prefecture, the annual autumn festival is held at Nanakuri-jinja Shrine from the late September to early October every year. This Japanese traditional festival has been continued for about 700 years to pray (or thank) for huge harvest, a state of perfect health. The seven young men selected from nearby villages dance with a heavy wooden pail (20 kg in weight) around a 10-meter-tall turret. A unique dance performed while raising a pail over the head is called ‘’Oke-Furi’’.

Photo Detail
Date Taken: 10.2016
Date Uploaded: 11.2018
Photo Location: Japan
Copyright: © Hidetoshi Ogata