Teeny 3D-Printed Churches For Hermit Crabs Are Incredibly Beautiful

This is one of the craziest uses of 3D printing we’ve seen yet.

Japanese artist Aki Inomata began 3D printing tiny homes for hermit crabs in a project she’s called “Why Not Hand Over a ‘Shelter’ To a Hermit Crab?’ in 2009. Her original teeny hermit crab shelters were inspired by famous cityscapes; her latest inspiration is all about “white chapels”—which have a fascinating back story.

The “white chapels” that inspired Inomata aren’t worship-based churches, they’re actually a curious appropriation of western religious architecture built just for weddings in Japan. That’s right: There’s no praying, just marrying in these Christian-style chapels. According to Inomata’s artist statement, while only 1 percent of Japanese citizens are Christians, about 60% of nuptials are held in the church-like “wedding sites.” (Maybe they do it for the excellent Instagram opportunities?)

Look closely at any of these buildings, and you’ll see a hodgepodge of styles from gothic to romanesque. Says Inomata, “I ask myself, ‘Are we Japanese living in a mimicry of the western world?’ For me, these imitations…of Western-style architecture seem to reflect identities of post-colonialism inside of Japanese people.”

Regardless, these intricate church-like shelters are delightfully adorable, and suddenly we’re dying to adopt a hermit crab of our own. We can only pray (heh) that it gets the chance to live in a home as incredible as the shelters designed by Inomata.

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