Gaiseisha　Amenomiya

凱生社（天宮）

Basic information

Origin of the name	Named after the triumphant return (gaisen) of the Japanese army: after Japan's great victory in the Sino-Japanese War in 1895 (Meiji 28), the whole nation celebrated the army's victorious homecoming.
Built	昭和11年10月 / 改修昭和59年10月
Builder	鈴木大吉（天宮）・松浦定吉（天宮）・松浦寅次郎（天宮）・山本一太郎（天宮）／改修平野金四郎（天宮）
Carver	中山由太郎政勝（岡崎市）
Painter	Not recorded
Wheels	鈴木紋次（天宮）
Name calligraphy	Not recorded
Notes	The current float is the second generation. It is made from hinoki (Japanese cypress) of Amenomiya Shrine and, alone among the floats of the Mori Festival, it is left unpainted, keeping the bare white wood and its solemn yet elegant appearance. When it was built, everyone was astonished by the splendour of its carvings, the richness of its decoration, and the size and sense of weight of the float itself; ever since, it has been the benchmark for other districts building floats of their own. The sculptor 中山由太郎政勝 was known as "the finest master on the Tokaido" when it came to carving flowers and birds (kacho). It is said that he stayed in the area and lodged on site until the carvings of the Gaiseisha float were completed. The carvings on the koshinageshi (lower rail), "Wild Geese among Reeds" and "Quail among Millet Ears", and the dragon on the kibana were badly damaged and have been replaced with works by 山田我聖 (Hamamatsu).

Source: 森の祭り（森の巻） p.18. Names and dates are shown as written in the Japanese original.