Statue & Monument · Shinsekai

Billiken (Tsutenkaku) ビリケン（通天閣）

The pointy-headed, grinning "god of things as they ought to be", an American 1908 good-luck figure adopted by Shinsekai: rub his soles on the 5th floor of Tsutenkaku for your wish to come true.

About

Billiken was created in 1908 by Florence Pretz, an American art teacher, and became a worldwide good-luck craze. A figure arrived at Luna Park, the amusement park beside the original Tsutenkaku, in 1912, and although Luna Park closed and the statue disappeared, Shinsekai never forgot him: a new one was carved in 1980 and installed in the Golden Observatory on the 5th floor of Tsutenkaku, where visitors stroke the soles of his outstretched feet. The current statue is the third generation, from 2012. Around Shinsekai you will see dozens of Billiken copies outside shops and restaurants, but the one in the tower is the "real" one with a small shrine-like setting.

Highlights

• Golden Observatory statue in Tsutenkakus 5th floor
• Rub his soles for luck, a Shinsekai ritual
• Dozens of copies around Shinsekai's streets
• Unusual American-born deity worshipped in Osaka

Tips

• Billiken is inside the paid Tsutenkaku observatory; buy a tower ticket to see him.
• Free Billiken statues in front of Shinsekai shops make a good photo trail.
• Billiken goods sold at the tower make quirky souvenirs.

Open in Google Maps · Info checked 2026-10-09

Nearby

• Tsutenkaku TowerLandmark & Tower · 0 m away
• Tsutenkaku from Shinsekai HondoriPhoto Spot · 50 m away
• ShinsekaiLandmark & Tower · 80 m away
• Tower Knives OsakaUnique Store · 80 m away
• Kushikatsu Daruma Shinsekai HontenRestaurant · 110 m away
• Shinsekai MarketLocal Secret · 140 m away
• Tennoji ZooZoo & Aquarium · 230 m away
• Janjan YokochoPhoto Spot · 300 m away