TOKYO — The first auction of the year was held on Jan. 5 at Tokyo’s Ota wholesale market, with a number of Takarabune treasure boats decorated with colorful vegetables put on sale.
The largest 3-meter-long boat was sold for 500,000 yen, the same price as last year.
Dealers at the auction hoped for the earliest possible recovery of the areas in the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture hit by a powerful earthquake on New Year’s Day.
In addition to two largest boats, four large boats were sold at 150,000 yen each.
An official of Maruni Co., an intermediate wholesaler which bought the boat, said, “We are worried as there are some farmers in Noto whom we haven’t been able to get in contact with. We want to come up with ideas on how we can support the disaster-hit areas.”
The first auction of the year for cherries grown in Yamagata Prefecture was also conducted on the day.
A box made of paulownia wood, containing 500 grams of 2L-size Sato Nishiki cherries each measuring 25 millimeters or more in diameter, was sold at a record high price of 1.4 million yen to intermediate wholesaler Funasho Group.
“Because sad incidents have been continuing to occur, I was wondering until this morning whether I should (make a bid), but I wanted to send out positive news even just a little at times like this,” the Funasho Group president stressed.
Treasure boats decorated with vegetables are displayed for the first auction of the year at Ota wholesale market in Tokyo’s Ota Ward on Jan. 5.