HASAMI, Nagasaki Prefecture--A community group here has come up with a novel way to make use of some of the hundreds of kilograms of paper cranes sent to the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum every year.

Turn them into incense.

The museum in the city stores a large number of "senbazuru" (1,000 origami cranes), a symbol of peace.

Bundles of them were recently burned in a kiln in Hasami, which is famous for ceramic production, so they could be turned into incense sticks by mixing the ash with scents.

The origami-based product was developed this summer to pray for peace and console the souls of victims of the atomic bombing that leveled Nagasaki on Aug. 9, 1945.

Local community revitalization group Compra-sha made the incense from the paper cranes after contemporary artist A-Taro Matsuo, 42, who heads the group and lives in Kyoto Prefecture, proposed the project.

Matsuo sees the ash as important material for his artwork production. While the substance is used as dye and glaze for craftwork as well as vegetable fertilizer and detergent, Matsuo often makes artistic productions featuring burns on paper and combines ash with paint.

Last year, Matsuo heard from a friend that the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum is struggling to handle the enormous number of origami cranes that come in every year.

“Ash is a symbol of regeneration and rebirth,” said Matsuo. “I wanted to preserve the feelings of those who created paper cranes like a relay sash by giving them a new form.”

As he had established Compra-sha with friends, he asked its members for help. After discussions, they decided to make incense to comfort the spirits of the dead and contacted the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Museum.

According to the museum, origami cranes totaling 700 kg pour in every year. They are put on display for a certain period, transferred to the warehouse on its second basement floor and then recycled as paper.

“We accepted the offer because the project carried out locally is aimed at regenerating paper cranes that have arrived in Nagasaki,” said a museum official.

After receiving origami works from the museum, Compra-sha burned them in a specially designed kiln.

As it required much effort to combine ash and perfume, Compra-sha repeatedly created and tested incense sticks before the product, boasting a soap-like aroma, was completed in the summer.

Compra-sha produced 3,000 sets of the Orizuru Koh incense and started selling them for 1,350 yen ($12.70), including tax, on the Internet. An incense stand made of Hasami ware was also developed with ash from senbazuru applied as glaze.

Compra-sha has already received many inquiries about the product. For example, one person said they want to “use the incense at a memorial service for my grandmother, who was exposed to radiation from the atomic bomb."

“I want to express a desire for peace through a stream of incense smoke in Nagasaki,” said Matsuo.