Mikoshi, or portable shrines, are a kind of vehicle that divine spirits can ride in during festivals. As the arrival of a divine spirit is thought to bring happiness and welfare, the carrying of these shrines around streets, transporting the deity around the neighborhood by shrine parishioners is considered to be the crowning jewel of the festivals themselves. Mentions of portable shrines are made in records from the Nara period (710-794), illustrating their long history. As would be expected of a vehicle befitting a deity, mikoshi contain both a solemn grandness and dazzling beauty, requiring a multitude of different skills in order to produce: woodworking for the body, wood carving, lacquer work, metallic ornaments, etc. Each step of the process of creating these portable shrines is divided up among a variety of different craftsman, in the end yielding handmade works produced through diligence and dexterous skill.