Wamao (Tile Cat) is an animal-like ridge-decoration on the traditional buildings of Yunnan Province in China.
Although Wamao is named of "cat", but it roars like a tiger with an oversized wideopened mouth. It is considered to be the "sacred beast" to safe guard the house and to ward off evil spirits. People tend to placed it on the central ridge of the main building and facing the same direction which carries the sense of inviting prosperity, happiness and wealth. Some Wamao are placed on the lintel which works like Door-God in safe garding the house and family members. In the sense of how important as Wamao to people's life in Yunnan, Wamao has become a unique cultural icon representing the province of Yunnan.
