260px, Kamifunazuka Kofun The is a ''

kofun are megalithic tombs or tumuli in Northeast Asia. ''Kofun'' were mainly constructed in the Japanese archipelago between the middle of the 3rd century to the early 7th century CE.岡田裕之「前方後円墳」『日本古代史大辞典』� ...

'' burial mound located in what is now part of the town of Wakasa, Fukui in the

Hokuriku region The was located in the northwestern part of Honshu, the main island of Japan. It lay along the Sea of Japan within the Chūbu region, which it is currently a part of. It is almost equivalent to Koshi Province and Hokurikudō area in pre-modern ...

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 tumulus was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1935.

Overview

The Kamifunazuka Kofun is one of a group of ''kofun'' located in the Hirano neighbourhood of central Wakasa town, forming the Jōnozuka Kofun Cluster. It is sandwiched between

Japan National Route 27 is a national highway connecting Tsuruga and Kyotamba in Japan. Route data *Length: 139.9 km (86.9 mi) *Origin: Tsuruga (originates at junction with Route 8) *Terminus: Kyotamba (ends at junction with Route 9) *Major cities: O ...

and the tracks of the JR West Obama Line railway. The tumulus is a , which is shaped like a keyhole, having one square end and one circular end, when viewed from above. It is oriented almost in an east-west direction with the posterior circular portion facing east and is separated from the

Shimofunazuka Kofun The is a ''kofun'' burial mound located in the Hikasa neighborhood of the town of Wakasa, Fukui in the Hokuriku region of Japan. It was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1935. It is also called the "Meotozuka" as it is paired with ...

by the path of the ancient Wakasa Kaidō, an ancient highway which connected this region with

Yamato was originally the area around today's Sakurai City in Nara Prefecture of Japan, which became Yamato Province and by extension a name for the whole of Japan. Yamato is also the dynastic name of the ruling Imperial House of Japan. Japanese his ...

.The total length of the tumulus is 70 meters, with the circular portion having a diameter of 36 meters and height of 16 meters. The "neck" of the structure has a width of 20 meters, widening out towards the west, where the anterior rectangular portion has a width of 50 meters. The height of the tumulus is 16 meters. The entire structure is similar to that of the nearby Nishizuka Kofun. The Kamifunazuka Kofun was once covered with ''

fukiishi ( or "roofing stone") were a means of covering burial chambers and burial mounds during the kofun period of Japan (). Stones collected from riverbeds were affixed to the slopes of raised kofun and other burial chambers. They are considered t ...

'', of which a portion remain, and the fragments of cylindrical '' haniwa'' have been found in the area. The ''kofun'' is also surrounded by a dry moat. The Kamifunazuka Kofun is believed to date from the early 6th century AD, or late in the

Kofun period The is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD (the date of the introduction of Buddhism), following the Yayoi period. The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period. This period is ...

, but this tumulus has yet to be excavated by archaeologists. It may have been the grave a local king before imperial dynasty control over the area of Wakasa was firmly established. Per local legend, this tumulus is said to be the grave of one of the '' Kuni no miyatsuko'' of Wakasa Province. The tumulus is about a 13-minute walk from Shin-Hirano Station on the JR West Obama Line.

References

External links

Obama city home page

{{in lang, ja Zenpokoenfun History of Fukui Prefecture Wakasa, Fukui Historic Sites of Japan Wakasa Province

Overview

See also

References

External links