Kinshachi
| Kinshachi | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 金鯱 | |||
| Character Data | |||
| AKA | Golden Tiger-Headed Carp, Golden Sachihoko
| ||
| Romaji | Kinshachi
| ||
| Debut | Not Featured Yet | ||
| Cryptid Data | |||
| Classification | Mythological Creature
| ||
| Origin | Japanese
| ||
| F.R.A. | Unknown
| ||
| Based On | Carp, Tiger
| ||
| Read More | Shachihoko
| ||
| Conservation | 
| ||
| Kinshachi | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 金鯱 | |||
| Character Data | |||
| AKA | Golden Tiger-Headed Carp, Golden Sachihoko
| ||
| Romaji | Kinshachi
| ||
| Debut | Not Featured Yet | ||
| Cryptid Data | |||
| Classification | Mythological Creature
| ||
| Origin | Japanese
| ||
| F.R.A. | Unknown
| ||
| Based On | Carp, Tiger
| ||
| Read More | Shachihoko
| ||
| Conservation |
| ||
| Kinshachi | KF3 | Gallery |
Kinshachi is a type of Friend that first appeared in the second Parco event.
Series Appearances
| Media | Role | |
|---|---|---|
Origins
A kinshachi is not an animal that exists in the wild, but instead can be found within Japanese mythology. The name 'kinshachi' (金鯱) comes from the characters'金' for 'gold' and '鯱' for 'shachi', which is shorthand for 'shachihoko' (鯱鉾). These two characters, therefore, mean 'golden shachihoko'.
A shachihoko (lit. 'Killer Whale') is also a mythical being. Despite their name, they are not actual killer whales, instead comprised of a tiger's head on the body of a large fish. They like to reside in the colder, more northern waters, and their fins and tails always point upward towards Heaven.
The most renowned ability of the shachihoko is its control over water. They can store large amounts of water in their stomachs, and can summon rain clouds to create a downpour wherever they pleased. Due to these two traits, the Japanese favored them as guardian spirits for their homes, placing them on the edges of roofs looking outward. The idea was, should a fire break out in a building a shachihoko was placed on, it would summon rain clouds to help put out the fire.
While shachihoko can be found on palaces, temples, and samurai houses, the golden shachihoko known as kinshachi can only be found on Nagoya Castle. Two golden shachihoko can be found on its roof, helping to protect the castle from fires. They're so famous that they've become the most recognised feature of Nagoya Castle, and identified as a symbol of Nagoya as a whole.
The kinshachi's fame has also hindered it, however.
References
http://yokai.com/shachihoko/ http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/shachihoko.html https://moshimoshimo.wordpress.com/2007/08/19/kinshachi-the-golden-shachihoko-in-nagoya-castle/