What does DOGU mean in Railroads?

Dogū

Dogū are small humanoid and animal figurines made during the late Jōmon period of prehistoric Japan. Dogū come exclusively from the Jōmon period. By the Yayoi period, which followed the Jōmon period, Dogū were no longer made. There are various styles of Dogū, depending on exhumation area and time period. According to the National Museum of Japanese History, the total number found throughout Japan is approximately 15,000. Dogū were made across all of Japan, with the exception of Okinawa. Most of the Dogū have been found in eastern Japan and it is rare to find one in western Japan. The purpose of the Dogū remains unclear but, most likely, the Dogū acted as effigies of people, that manifested some kind of sympathetic magic. For example, it may have been believed that illnesses could be transferred into the Dogū, then destroyed, clearing the illness, or any other misfortune. Dogū should not be confused with the clay haniwa funerary objects of the Kofun period. A number of ancient astronaut theorists, such as Erich von Däniken, have suggested that some Dogū figurines may represent beings in spacesuits; however such theories are not considered credible within the mainstream scientific community.

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