Is there a meaning associated with upside-down kanji?

Question

I'm watching an anime ("The Irregular at Magic High School"), and in one scene (Season 1, Episode 23, 0:45), the kanji　福 ("good fortune": https://jisho.org/search/%E7%A6%8F%20%23kanji Colors are yellow-on-red.) appears on a wall-hanging in the background, but it's upside-down. Given the rest of the scene, it seems unlikely this is an accident by either the animators or the characters. (See the inset in https://youtu.be/J-lNJxDs5MQ?t=1138 )

Is there a meaning associated with such a display? Mourning might fit the other things going on in the series, and might fit the meaning of this particular kanji (as "inverted good fortune"), but I haven't found references for such.

Thank you.

Answer 1

This is a common Chinese cultural symbol seen in Chinese-related residences. The Chinese-language expression「福到來」or「到福」means arrival「到」of fortune「福」, and when hung in a house, it represents the arrival of fortune at this house.

「到{とう}」is homophonous with「倒{とう}」(overturn, 転倒{てんとう}); the overturned/upside-down nature of the symbol is a pun on「到」.