Traditional horse festival held in Iwate, northeastern Japan

About 70 colorfully clad horses have paraded in a traditional festival marking the start of early summer in northeastern Japan. The "Chagu Chagu Umakko" horse festival is held at the end of the rice-planting season in Iwate Prefecture.

The event is said to have started when farmers thanked their horses for helping with agricultural work and prayed for their health and well-being. Its name "Chagu Chagu" is said to come from the sound of the bells hung around the horses' necks.