By TSUBASA SETOGUCHI/ Staff Writer
January 27, 2021 at 17:30 JST
“Hina” dolls modeled on U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris are displayed at the Kyugetsu doll store in Tokyo’s Taito Ward on Jan. 27. (Tsubasa Setoguchi)
U.S. President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic power duo inaugurated last week, are among the year’s “promising hina dolls” produced by the doll manufacturer Kyugetsu.
The pair were unveiled all dolled up as traditional “hina-ningyo” in its Tokyo store on Jan. 27.
The company makes special dolls each year to mark the March 3 Girls’ Day, modeling them on up-and-comers and those expected to excel in the year ahead.
Hisatoshi Yokoyama, 38, a senior managing director of the company, said the newly sworn in Biden, who replaced Donald Trump, and Harris, America’s first Black, female vice president, were chosen this year because they carry the hope of “restoring world order.”
The Biden and Harris dolls are on display side by side holding a big mask together.
“I hope the days of the novel coronavirus pandemic will come to an end and people can live wearing bright smiles with their masks off,” Yokoyama said, explaining the reason behind the presentation.
The Biden doll is 40 centimeters tall, while the Harris doll is 38 cm tall. Both figurines weigh about 2 kilograms.
The pair, among other dolls, will be displayed at the company’s headquarters in Tokyo’s Taito Ward until Jan. 29.
Whether they will go on tour to be displayed around Japan has yet to be determined due to the pandemic.
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