Rokkaku Kites

Reliable And High-Flying Without Tails!

All Roks have one vertical spar and two bowed horizontal spars, forming a six-sided figure when covered with sail material. In theory, a single-point bridle could work, but most Roks have at least 4-point bridles to keep them steady in the air.

We've been to few kite festivals over the years and taken plenty of photos. There's a few Rokkaku pictures among them, so see below for a few large and elaborately decorated examples.

An example of a good shop-bought Rok is the HQ Rokkaku Kite from Amazon.

Rokkakus We Have Seen At Festivals

Here's 6 Rokkakus, each with a unique decorative design on the sail. Firstly, 3 Roks with face designs from Japan. Yep, the 'real deal'. We saw these being flown by men in traditional kite-flying garb. Next comes a modern design, another traditional but non-face design and finally an ad for a local kite shop!

This stern Sumarai looks like he is about to lop your head off with a sharp sword... At least, that was my first impression. It might actually be a Japanese deity or something else entirely! Anyway, it's a traditionally decorated Japanese Rokkaku.

For reasons known only to the Japanese, this fearsome toothy character has powdered his nose completely white... Another traditional Rokkaku.

What is it with the white noses? Another striking face on a Rok kite.

I really like this design. A simple, but highly effective 3D graphic in bold colors. Perfect!

Distinctly Asian in form and color, the painting on this large Rok really stood out against the pale blue sky. Nice one!

So it's advertising a local kite shop... What the heck, it's a very nice Rok!

That's about it for this page on Rokkakus. Hope you enjoyed the pics!

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