The production of ox figurines has peaked at Maruei Toki, a maker of Bankoyaki pottery, in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture.
With the ox being the Chinese zodiac sign for 2021, employees at a Maruei Toki factory are busy painting the figurines.
The figurines are characterized by an overall roundness and relaxed feature. They are available in two color schemes -- red and white, and gold and silver. The company will create 33 items, including a 9.5-centimeter-tall parent, a 6.5-centimeter-tall calf, and a parent and child set.
Maruei Toki usually produces about 140,000 such figurines annually, but this year it has cut its production to about half of the usual amount as souvenir demand is expected to be less due to the novel coronavirus pandemic.
The company's president, Yoshiyuki Mizutani, 61, said, "We're making them while praying for people's health."
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