Dogū

Dogu is the name for little statues that people made a long, long time ago in Japan. These statues don't look like people or animals that you might see around you now. Instead, they usually have big, bug-like eyes, and their bodies are kind of round and blobby.

People who made these statues didn't have machines or fancy tools like we do now. They used their hands and simple tools to shape clay or dirt into the dogu shape. Some people think that dogu were used for important ceremonies, like weddings or funerals, because they've been found near places where these ceremonies happened. Others think that they might have been used to help women who were going to have babies, because some of the statues look like pregnant women.

Even though the people who made dogu lived a very long time ago, we can still see and learn from the statues they made. They tell us about what life and art were like a long time ago, and they help us understand and appreciate different cultures from around the world.