The History

According to Japanese lore, if you have a wish, fold one thousand origami cranes and your wish will be granted.  In feudal Japan, brides would take upon this task called sembazuru in Japanese, in hopes that they will be rewarded with a long and prosperous marriage.

Today, family and friends will fold sembazuru for weddings, or as a get well wish for someone who is ill, or to celebrate a special anniversary or birthday.  Sembazuru is also an art where the cranes are arranged in the shape of a family crest or other meaningful design and then framed and presented at the wedding reception or special event.  This becomes an heirloom to be passed down through the generations, a modern symbol of a traditional art form.

Recently, sembazuru has developed into a worldwide phenomenon where communities gather together to fold cranes as a wish for world peace.  People from all walks of life and from all over the world fold sembazuru and send it to Hiroshima's Peace Park to wish for peace, and the hope that the tragedies of the bombing of Hiroshima will never happen again.