The is the collective name for 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 ...
consisting of six separate clusters of
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 ...
burial mounds located in what is now part of the town of
Kawanishi, Yamagata
file:Kawanishi DahliaGarden inside.jpg, 270px, Kawanishi Dahlia Park
is a Towns of Japan, town located in Yamagata Prefecture, Japan. , the town had an estimated population of 14,967 in 5052 households, and a population density of 90 persons per k ...
in the
Tōhoku region
The , Northeast region, or consists of the northeastern portion of Honshu, the largest island of Japan. This traditional region consists of six prefectures (''ken''): Akita, Aomori, Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, and Yamagata.
Tōhoku retains a ...
of
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 2000.
Overview
The Shimokomatsu Kofun group consists of 202 known ''
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』 ...
'' arranged into six clusters on a long ridge at an altitude of 230 to 280 meters in the Shimokomatsu neighborhood of Kawanishi. These include 21 (which are shaped like a keyhole, having one square end and one circular end, when viewed from above) or ( "two conjoined rectangles" type keyhole tumuli). This cluster contains over half of the keyhole-shaped tumuli which have been found in Yamagata.
These ''kofun'' were built from the end of the 4th century to the early 6th century AD.
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 ...
s are ongoing, and various
grave goods such as
bronze mirrors, jewelry, weapons and agricultural tools have been recovered. The National Historic Site designation encompasses a total of 179 tumuli in three groups.
The site is located approximately 10 minutes by car from
Uzen-Komatsu Station
is a railway station in the town of Kawanishi, Yamagata Prefecture, Japan, operated by East Japan Railway Company (JR East).
Lines
Uzen-Komtasu Station is served by the Yonesaka Line, and is located 16.9 rail kilometers from the terminus of th ...
on the
JR East
The is a major passenger railway company in Japan and is the largest of the seven Japan Railways Group companies. The company name is officially abbreviated as JR-EAST or JR East in English, and as in Japanese. The company's headquarters are ...
Yonesaka Line.
See also
*
List of Historic Sites of Japan (Yamagata)
This list is of the Monuments of Japan, Historic Sites of Japan located within the Prefectures of Japan, Prefecture of Yamagata Prefecture, Yamagata.
National Historic Sites
As of 1 December 2022, thirty-one Sites have been Cultural Properties o ...
References
External links
Enjoy Yamagata home page
{{in lang, ja
History of Yamagata Prefecture
Kawanishi, Yamagata
Historic Sites of Japan
Kofun clusters