The , is an

archaeological site An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology an ...

with the ruins of a

Hakuhō period The was an unofficial of Emperor TenmuNussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "''Hakuhō''" in ; n.b., Louis-Frédéric is pseudonym of Louis-Frédéric Nussbaum, ''see'Deutsche Nationalbibliothek Authority File. after '' Hakuchi'' and before '' Suc ...

Buddhist temple A Buddhist temple or Buddhist monastery is the place of worship for Buddhists, the followers of Buddhism. They include the structures called vihara, chaitya, stupa, wat and pagoda in different regions and languages. Temples in Buddhism represen ...

located in the Shindachionoshiro neighborhood of the city of

Sennan, Osaka is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 60,318 in 26214 households and a population density of 1200 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Sennan is located in the southwester ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. The temple no longer exists, but the temple grounds were designated as a National Historic Site in 1987.

Overview

Kaeji temple ruins are located near the coast of

Osaka Bay Osaka Bay (大阪湾 ''Ōsaka-wan'' ) is a bay in western Japan. As an eastern part of the Seto Inland Sea, it is separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Kii Channel and from the neighbor western part of the Inland Sea by the Akashi Strait. ...

, on a stepped hill with an elevation of about 20 meters at the southernmost tip of the Sennan region, and mostly within the precincts of a

Shinto Shrine A is a structure whose main purpose is to house ("enshrine") one or more ''kami'', the deities of the Shinto religion. Overview Structurally, a Shinto shrine typically comprises several buildings. The '' honden''Also called (本殿, meani ...

named . The site first came to academic interest in 1936, when a preliminary

archaeological excavation In archaeology, excavation is the exposure, processing and recording of archaeological remains. An excavation site or "dig" is the area being studied. These locations range from one to several areas at a time during a project and can be condu ...

found the foundations of a temple with a layout patterned after

Hōryū-ji is a Buddhist temple that was once one of the powerful Seven Great Temples, in Ikaruga, Nara Prefecture, Japan. Its full name is , or Learning Temple of the Flourishing Law, the complex serving as both a seminary and monastery. The temple wa ...

Ikaruga, Nara is a town in Ikoma District, Nara, Japan. Ikaruga is home to Hōryū-ji and Hokki-ji, ancient Buddhist temples collectively inscribed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites. Other ancient temples include Hōrin-ji, also in the vicinity of Hōryū-ji. T ...

, and the site of large residence belonging to a powerful local clan leader. The design of the

roof tile A roof ( : roofs or rooves) is the top covering of a building, including all materials and constructions necessary to support it on the walls of the building or on uprights, providing protection against rain, snow, sunlight, extremes of temper ...

s indicated that the temple was built in the

Asuka period The was a period in the history of Japan lasting from 538 to 710 (or 592 to 645), although its beginning could be said to overlap with the preceding Kofun period. The Yamato polity evolved greatly during the Asuka period, which is named after t ...

, or the latter half of the 7th century. The foundations of the

Kondō Kondō, Kondo or Kondou (近藤 "near wisteria") is a surname prominent in Japanese culture, although it also occurs in other countries. Notable people with the surname include: * , Japanese ballet dancer * Dorinne K. Kondo, anthropologist * Kond ...

in the east and a

Pagoda A pagoda is an Asian tiered tower with multiple eaves common to Nepal, India, China, Japan, Korea, Myanmar, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia. Most pagodas were built to have a religious function, most often Buddhist but sometimes Taoist, ...

in the west, surrounded by a

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against a ...

, as well as the foundations of the Lecture Hall were confirmed in subsequent excavations from 1981 through 1986. The temple appears to have survived into the

Muromachi period The is a division of Japanese history running from approximately 1336 to 1573. The period marks the governance of the Muromachi or Ashikaga shogunate (''Muromachi bakufu'' or ''Ashikaga bakufu''), which was officially established in 1338 by t ...

; however, there is no documentary record of the temple. The name "Kaie-ji" is a modern local geographic name, and may or may not correspond to the name of this temple. Of the excavated items, 302 pieces were collectively designated as National Important Cultural Properties in 1995 and are stored and exhibited in the adjacent . These include many varieties of roof tiles, fragments of statuary and metal decorations from the ruined pagoda, as well as ceramic shards. Portions of the site have been preserved as an

archaeological park An archaeological site is a place (or group of physical sites) in which evidence of past activity is preserved (either prehistoric or historic or contemporary), and which has been, or may be, investigated using the discipline of archaeology and ...

.It is located a 25-minute walk from Okadaura Station on the

Nankai Main Line The is one of the two main railway lines of Japanese private railway company Nankai Electric Railway, together with Kōya Line. The route is from Namba Station in south downtown of Osaka to Wakayamashi Station in Wakayama via Sakai, Izumiōtsu ...

Gallery

Kaieji (Sennan), tou-1.jpg, Foundation of the Pagoda Kaieji (Sennan), koudou-2.jpg, Foundation of the Lecture Hall, and Ichioka Jinja which is located on the site of the Kondō Kaieji (Sennan), nanmon.jpg, Foundations of the South Gate Ancient historical museum01s2040.jpg, Ancient History Museum

References

External links

Sennan city home page

Sennan Tourist Information
{{in lang, ja Buddhist temples in Osaka Prefecture Sennan, Osaka Izumi Province Asuka period Historic Sites of Japan Buddhist archaeological sites in Japan Important Cultural Properties of Japan

Overview

Gallery

See also

References

External links