Lottery Launch Day

What Is Lottery Launch Day?

October 29th is "Lottery Launch Day" in Japan. On October 29th, 1945, the government's first "takarakuji" lottery went on sale under the Temporary Funds Adjustment Act to raise money for rebuilding after the war -- just over two months after the war ended.

10 Yen a Ticket, 100,000 Yen for First Prize

Japan was in the grip of severe postwar inflation. Besides raising reconstruction funds, the lottery was also meant to soak up surplus money in circulation and curb inflation.

• Launch date: October 29, 1945
• Price: 10 yen per ticket
• Prizes: 1st prize 100,000 yen, 2nd 10,000 yen, 3rd 1,000 yen, 4th 50 yen, 5th 20 yen
• Bonus prizes: winners down to 4th prize also received calico, a plain-woven cotton cloth from India
• Losing tickets: four of them could be exchanged for 10 cigarettes

Bonus Prizes Born of Scarcity

Cotton cloth and cigarettes may seem like odd prizes today, but in a time of severe shortages they were highly prized. In 1946, the law was amended so that prefectures, not just the national government, could issue lotteries. That December, the first local lottery -- the Fukui Prefecture Reconstruction Lottery, nicknamed "Fuku-fuku Kuji" -- went on sale.

Tips for Marking This Day

• Imagine what the first lottery's prizes would be worth at today's prices
• Look up how lottery proceeds are used
• Ask family or older acquaintances about life during the postwar recovery
• Chat with coworkers about what you would do if you won

A Ticket of Dreams That Began as a Wish for Recovery

Today the lottery is enjoyed as a way to "buy a dream," but it began as a way to fund Japan's postwar reconstruction. October 29th is a day to reflect on the hopes of that era packed into a single ticket.