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Japanese Lucky Beckoning Cat banknote design is the faux money we wish was real

Oona McGee Jan 6, 2020
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Manekineko cat currency is filled with lucky omens for the New Year.

Last April, the Ministry of Finance revealed new designs for the Japanese yen, featuring an image of Tokyo Station and the Great Wave off Kanagawa that’s set to go into circulation in 2024.

The new Japanese notes prompted local illustrator and manga artist @PonkichiM to sketch some alternative banknote ideas of his own, coming up with the idea for a Shiba Inu banknote, which was soon followed by a design from illustrator @bokoyai dedicated to cats.

Now the two artists have joined forces to create a new idea for another banknote, this time featuring the manekineko, a “beckoning cat” with its paw raised that’s believed to attract money and good fortune. As explained by @bokoyai in this tweet (translated below) the note contains a number of lucky motifs designed to bring its bearer fortune as well.

猫親子の700円札を描きました。
ラッキーセブンの７００円でぽん吉さん（ @PonkichiM ）が描いた装飾に招き猫の親子を可愛く描きました。
赤富士には商売繁盛、災厄を逃れる、悪縁を断ち切る、願望が成就するなど開運効果と招き猫を合わせてお財布の中にホッコリ１枚お守り代わりに欲しいですね🗻🐈 pic.twitter.com/DPE2f2aTZL

— 瞬く🐈 Skebご依頼募集中🍎 (@bokoyai) December 26, 2019

“I drew a 700-yen manekineko note.
I drew a cute image of a beckoning cat mother and her kittens on a Lucky Seven 700-yen decoration by @PonkichiM.
As it combines the lucky beckoning cat with a red Mt Fuji, which is believed to bring business prosperity, help fulfill one’s wishes, and ward against disaster and bad luck, you’ll want to put this in your wallet in place of an omamori amulet.”

Japan doesn’t actually have a 700-yen note, as the country’s banknotes start at 1,000 yen, but if the country ever wanted to introduce one, this manekineko design would be a real contender. Anticipating its popularity, the new “banknote” has been given its very own line of merchandise, listed below.

▼ There’s the Maneki Neko Banknote Full Colour Memo Notepad for 770 yen (on sale from 30 January).

▼ The Maneki Neko Banknote Set Pass Case for 1,595 yen (on sale from 14 February).

▼ The Maneki Neko Banknote Synthetic Leather Keyholder for 770 yen (on sale from 14 February).

▼ The Maneki Neko Banknote Visual Towel for 2,200 yen (on sale from 14 February).

▼ The Maneki Neko Banknote Change Purse for 1,870 yen (on sale from 14 February).

▼ The Maneki Neko Banknote Flat Pouch for 1,650 yen (on sale from 14 February).

▼ The Maneki Neko Round Fastener Wallet for 3,465 yen (on sale from 28 February).

▼ The Maneki Neko Banknote Handkerchief for 950 yen (on sale from 14 February).

▼ And the Maneki Neko Banknote Smartphone Case for 3,520 yen (on sale from 30 January)

The new merchandise can be pre-ordered now from the FurBaby Space Factory online store, and will soon be available from other online shopping sites like Amazon Japan.

We’ve got our fingers crossed for the manekineko banknotes to one day become legal tender, because it would be awesome to buy a beckoning cat at the beckoning cat temple with beckoning cat money!

Source, images: PR Times
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