A small Japanese clothing store has gone viral after its sign featuring a cute baby turned into a horror attraction due to the intense heat and sunlight over the last couple of years.
Hangai, a clothing and miscellaneous goods store in Nagahama City, Japan’s Shiga Prefecture, has had the same sign board for 10 years – an adorable baby with a speech bubble that reads “We have lots of good, cheap things”. However, last year, after a particularly hot summer, the sign changed into an eerie sight, with the baby’s eyes and mouth becoming pitch black. Due to the intense heat and direct sunlight, the dark colors of the sign became charred, creating a terrifying sight. Things got even worse this year, after another scorching summer. The heat made the once-adorable store sign even scarier, with the baby’s entire face now strangely dark, as if it had come out of a fire.
Last summer, Masanao Itaya, owner of the Hangai clothing and miscellaneous goods store, told Japanese news agency FNN that he noticed the damage to his store sign in August and meant to change it, fearing that it would scare customers away. However, the Obon Festival came, and by the time he finally got around to changing it, he noticed something strange. People from all over the country were coming to his store to see and photograph the “possessed baby” sign, so he decided that taking it down would be bad for business.
Last month, after another record-breaking summer in terms of heat, the sign once again made news headlines in Japan. Due to the excessive heat, the dark areas around the baby’s eyes and mouth got bigger, and dark splotches started appearing on its cheeks and nose, making it even scarier. It’s unclear whether Itaya will finally take it down now, or if he will continue to take advantage of the free advertising on social media.
For more bizarre signs, check out these dogs used as walking billboards for political candidates in India.