The is a group ''

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 Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

s located in the Maruoka neighborhood of the city of

Sakai, Fukui file:Maruoka Castle 20100529-01.jpg, Maruoka Castle is a Cities of Japan, city located in Fukui Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 92,210 in 31,509 households and the population density of 550 persons per km². The tot ...

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 site was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1990.

Overview

The Rokuroseyama Kofun Cluster is located on a hillside at an elevation of 50 to 200 meters above sea level, and consists of at least 130 circular, rectangular and keyhole-shape tumuli, collectively known as the , of which the Rokuroseyama Kofun Cluster is the portion towards the southeast of the site, at the highest elevation, overlooking the

Kuzuryū River The is a river flowing through Fukui Prefecture, Japan. It has its source at the Aburasaka Pass (油坂峠 ''Aburasaka-tōge'') in the city of Ōno and empties into the Sea of Japan near the city of Sakai. River system Some of the main rivers ...

. The site consists of two very large , which are shaped like a keyhole, having one square end and one circular end, when viewed from above (designated No.1 and No.3), and two rectangular-type (), designated No. 2 and No. 4). The tumuli are estimated to date from the late 4th to the early 5th century AD. The tombs do not appear in any historical records and the name of rank of the person buried within is unknown.

The Kofun

Kofun No.1 is located at an elevation of 200 meters at the ridgeline of the hill, with a north-south orientation. With a total length of 147 meters, it is the largest found in the Hokuriku region. The posterior circular portion of the tomb in on the northern end, and has a diameter of 78 meters and a height of 13 meters. The anterior rectangular portion has a length of 52 meters, width of 58 meters and height of 11 meters in two tiers. Large numbers of ''

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 ...

'' and ''

haniwa The are terracotta clay figures that were made for ritual use and buried with the dead as funerary objects during the Kofun period (3rd to 6th centuries AD) of the history of Japan. ''Haniwa'' were created according to the ''wazumi'' technique, ...

'' in cylindrical, morning-glory, or house shapes, were found in the area. The circular portion contains a semi-circular

burial chamber A chamber tomb is a tomb for burial used in many different cultures. In the case of individual burials, the chamber is thought to signify a higher status for the interred than a simple grave. Built from rock or sometimes wood, the chambers could a ...

with dimensions of 27 x 15 meters with a height of 4.2 meters, which had been broken into and robbed at some indeterminate time. Fragments of a

tuff Tuff is a type of rock made of volcanic ash ejected from a vent during a volcanic eruption. Following ejection and deposition, the ash is lithified into a solid rock. Rock that contains greater than 75% ash is considered tuff, while rock cont ...

boat-shaped

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (plural sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a box-like funeral receptacle for a corpse, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek ...

were found scattered on the floor. Kofun No.2 is a rectangular tumulus with dimensions of 16 meters east-west by 11 meters north-south, and a height of 2.2 meters and is located to the east of Kofun No.1. It appears to have been an auxiliary structure to Kofun No.1, but contained no ''fukiishi'' and no ''haniwa''. Kofun No.3 is also a large keyhole-shaped tumulus located at the ridgeline of the hill, but with an east-west orientation. It has a length of 85 meters, with the posterior circular portion having a diameter of 48 meters and a height of 11 meters. The anterior rectangular portion has a length of 37 meters, width of 48 meters and height of nine meters in two tiers. Large numbers of ''fukuiishi'', as well as a large variety of ''haniwa'' (cylindrical, house-shaped, trapezoidal, etc.) were found. The burial chamber is orientated to the north, with dimensions of 11 by 11 meters and a height of 1.1 meters. The tumulus appears to have been built later than Kofun No.1. Kofun No.4 is also a rectangular tumulus with dimensions of 13 meters east-west by 16 meters north-south, and a height of 2.7 meters, located to the east of Kofun No.1. It appears to have been an auxiliary structure to Kofun No.3. The site is about a 30-minute walk from Shiizakai Station on the

Echizen Railway is a third-sector railway operating company located in Fukui, Fukui Prefecture, Japan. It owns and operates the Katsuyama Eiheiji Line between Fukui and Katsuyama and the Mikuni Awara Line between Fukui and Sakai. History In 1992, Keifuku Ele ...

Katsuyama Eiheiji Line The is a railway line operated by Echizen Railway in Fukui Prefecture. The line extends 27.8 km from the city of Fukui to Katsuyama with a total of 23 stations. It was operated by Keifuku Electric Railway until 2001; Echizen Railway took o ...

References

External links

Sakai city home page

{{in lang, ja Kofun History of Fukui Prefecture Sakai, Fukui Historic Sites of Japan Echizen Province

Overview

The Kofun

See also

References

External links