Magatama

are curved, comma-shaped beads that appeared in prehistoric Japan from the Final Jōmon period through the Kofun period, approximately 1000 BCE to the 6th century CE. The beads, also described as "jewels", were made of primitive stone and earthen materials in the early period, but by the end of the Kofun period were made almost exclusively of jade. originally served as decorative jewelry, but by the end of the Kofun period functioned as ceremonial and religious objects. Archaeological evidence suggests that were produced in specific areas of Japan and were widely dispersed throughout the Japanese archipelago to the Southern Koreanic kingdoms via trade routes.

Jōmon period

first appeared in Japan in the Final Jōmon period (1000–300 BCE), and in this period were made from relatively simple, naturally occurring materials, including clay, talc, slate, quartz, gneiss, jadeite, nephrite, and serpentinite. from the Jōmon period were irregularly shaped, lacked continuity in form from region to region, and have been called "Stone Age " for this reason. are thought to be an imitation of the teeth of large animals, pierced with a hole, which are found in earlier Jōmon remains. These resemble , but more recent scholarship indicates that these early Jōmon may have simply had a decorative function, and have no relationship to . in the Jōmon period appear to have moved from the purely decorative to having a status and ceremonial function by the end of the period. A "middle Jōmon exchange network" may have existed, whereby were produced in regions where materials for their manufacture were readily plentiful. Jade and talc examples produced in bead-making villages located in present-day Itoigawa, Niigata have been found at a large number of sites along the northern coast, in the central mountains, and in Kantō region.

Archaeological sites (Jōmon)

Examples of from the Jōmon period have been discovered in large numbers at the Kamegaoka site in Tsugaru, Aomori Prefecture. The Kamegaoka remains are among the largest known Jōmon settlement in Japan, and the , among other decorative objects found, may be an indicator of the high social status of the settlement.

Other sites associated with the Kamegaoka settlement have yielded , including the Ōboriya shell mound, in the northwest corner of Ōfunato Bay, which yielded a huge number of beads, as well as the Korekawa site, near Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture. Remains from the Korekawa site can be seen at the Korekawa Archaeological Museum in Hachinohe. Stone and clay and -like beads have also been discovered at the Amataki site, Ninohe, Iwate Prefecture, Osagata site, Ibaraki Prefecture, and the Kou site, Fujiidera, Osaka Prefecture. Numerous at the Ōishi site, Bungo-ōno, Ōita Prefecture, Kyushu show signs of being used for ceremonial, rather than decorative, purposes.

The Sannai-Maruyama Site, excavated 1992 in Aomori, Aomori Prefecture, yielded three large jade beads measuring .

Yayoi period

in the Yayoi period (300 BCE – 300 CE) are notably different from Jōmon-period . The jewels moved from a primitive, non-standard form towards more polished and uniform form in this period. The technology to cut large gemstones and polish jewels notably advanced in the Yayoi period. Refined materials such as jadeite, serpentinite, and glass replaced the less sophisticated materials of the Jōmon period. Yayoi period are noted for their reverse C-shaped form, which by the end of the period had become an almost squared shape. From the Yayoi period onwards, uniformly feature a bored hole that allowed the jewels to be held on a string.

The Yayoi period is marked by specific geographic centers specializing in and the widespread trade of . The period is marked by the formation of power centers that came to be individual states. The development of weapons increased in this period to protect increasingly developed rice fields and fishing rights. Trade greatly increased in this period, as did the specialization of production of certain items, including . producing areas exchanged their product with other products, specifically rice, leading to the widespread distribution of across Japan. were commonly used to create necklaces and bracelets worn on the wrists or ankles. The necklace was typically constructed of jadeite separated by cylindrical bored-holed pieces of jasper. Small beads of dark-blue glass are also not uncommon on the necklace. The bracelet typically also used shells from the coastal areas of Shikoku and the Inland Sea, wood, and bronze. In this period the use of the mirror, sword, and jewels as status symbols for village, and later regional leaders of all kinds, emerged in the Yayoi period, and point to the origin of the mirror, sword, and as the Imperial Regalia of Japan.

The ''Records of the Three Kingdoms'', the earliest historical document with a reference to Japan, describes the Wa people, an ancient country of Yamatai, and its queen, Himiko. The ''Record'' indicates that when Himiko died, her relative Iyo, a girl of 13, was made queen and sent a delegation of twenty officials under Yazuku, an imperial general, to offer tribute to the Northern Wei court. "The delegation visited the capital and offered to the court five thousand white gems and two pieces of carved jade, as well as twenty pieces of brocade with variegated designs." The carved jade in the ''Record'' likely describes a tribute of two jade .

Archaeological sites (Yayoi)

The large-scale Yayoi period remains at the Yoshinogari site, Yoshinogari and Kanzaki in Saga Prefecture revealed examples of lead glass typical of the Yayoi period. In 2003, the excavation of a large Yayoi period settlement in Tawaramoto, Nara also revealed two large jade , one , the second in length. The larger Tawaramoto is the 10th-largest example found to date in Japan. Both jade from the site are of unusually high-quality brilliant green jade.

One known center of Yayoi production was in the area of the Tamatsukuri Inari Shrine in Osaka. literally means "jewel making", and a guild, the Tamatsukuri-be, was active from the Yayoi period. An existing jewel at the shrine is said to have great spiritual power. appear on all sorts of implements of the present-day temple, including amulets, roof tiles, and lanterns. The inari female fox at the gate of a subshrine of Tamatsukuri Inari Shrine wears a necklace of . The shrine has an exhibit on the history and production of .

Kofun period

became very common in the Kofun period (250–538 CE), and by the end of the period almost all tumuli contained . In the early Kofun period, were made from jadeite as in earlier periods, but by the middle of the period were made from jasper, and by the end of the period, almost exclusively of agate and jade. capped by silver or gold also appear towards the end of the period. Large made of talc, imitations of smaller ones made of more precious materials, were used as grave goods. are found in tumuli across Japan from the period. Their use went from merely decorative to sacred and ceremonial grave goods. are with inscriptions that look like flowers of the clove tree and have a hole suitable to attach to a string. These first appear in the Kofun period. Also in the Kofun period, appear on necklaces, with several set between bored cylinders. Archeological remains show evidence of similar ankle bracelets, but they are less common. Clay funerary objects of the Kofun period commonly depict people wearing the necklaces and ankle bracelets.

Archaeological sites (Kofun)

Examples of stone from the Kofun period are especially numerous. An excavation of the Kamegaoka , Kishiwada, Osaka, revealed a local who had been buried with a jade, jasper, and alabaster necklace, as well as placed near the feet. A bronze mirror imported from China accompanying the burial was dated to 239 CE. The is a Designated Historical Spot of the city of Kishiwada. Ceremonial offerings from a burial from the Kisami-Araida area of Shimoda, Shizuoka also revealed clay reproductions of used as effigies. The excavation of the Ubusuna 史跡　産土山古墳
/ref> in Kyōtango, Kyoto yielded two fully intact necklaces of jade and agate, with segments between in length.

The large Muro Miyayama of Katsuragi, Nara, on the Yamato Plain, in length, was plundered long before its excavation, but revealed 600 talc ceremonial among other funerary objects, which also included 10 bronze Han Chinese mirrors. The Hiraide remains of Shiojiri, Nagano, one of the three largest prehistoric sites in Japan, and far from any regional power center, includes typical Kofun period remains, but also objects associated with modern Shinto ceremonial practice. Nevertheless, in Hiraide reveal both plain and elaborate among other funerary objects.

The Sakurai in Sakurai, Nara, excavated in 1949, represents a from the final phase of the Kofun period, and is possibly from a ruler associated with the imperial family. The is high and shows evidence of being surrounded by a moat. Among the very large number of funerary objects were high-quality weapons, including swords, 10 mirrors, and a necklace of jadeite , agate cylinders, and glass beads used to make a -style necklace.

Origin of magatama forms

Archaeologists and historians are unable yet to explain what the origins of forms are, or whether these forms can be traced back to one convergent source. A number of explanations have been suggested, including:

* They may be fashioned after animal fangs/teeth
* They may be modeled after the shape of fetuses
* They may be symbolic of the shape of the soul
* They may be modeled after the shape of the moon
* That there is meaning and connotation attached to the shape of the itself (i.e. meaning comes from the form itself, and not that has been patterned after anything else)

In Japanese mythology

The and , completed in the 8th century, have numerous references to . They appear in the first chapter of the , which largely describes the mythology of Japan. Susanoo, god of the sea and storms, received five hundred from Tamanoya no mikoto, or Ame-no-Futodama-no-mikoto, the jewel-making deity. Susanoo went to heaven and presented them to his sister, the sun goddess Amaterasu, who bit off successive parts of the , and blew them away to create other deities. Tamanoya no mikoto remains the god of , glasses, and cameras. In the legend Amaterasu later shuts herself in a cave. Ama-no-Koyane-no-mikoto hung , among other objects, on a five hundred-branch tree, to successfully lure Amaterasu from the cave. In the year 58, in the reign of the Emperor Suinin, the records that a dog killed and disemboweled a , a type of badger, and a was discovered in its stomach. This was presented to Suinin, who enshrined it at Isonokami Shrine, where it is said to presently reside. A similar practice is described again in the during the reign of the Emperor Chūai. Chūai made an inspection trip to the Tsukushi, or Kyūshū, and was presented with an enormous tree hung with as well as other sacred objects.

Yasakani no Magatama

A noted is the , one of the three Imperial Regalia of Japan. Swords, mirrors, and jewels were common objects of status for regional rulers in Japan as early as the Yayoi period, and were further widespread in the Kofun period, as shown by their ubiquitous presence in kofun tumuli. The is stored at the , the central shrine of the Three Palace Sanctuaries at the Tokyo Imperial Palace, and is used in the enthronement ceremony of the Emperor of Japan.

Daniel Clarence Holtom stated in 1928 in ''Japanese enthronement ceremonies; with an account of the imperial regalia'' that the is the only one of the three regalia that exists in its original form; post-World War II scholarship supports the claim. Replicas of the sword and mirror were made as early as the 9th century, and the originals were entrusted to other shrines.

Usage in Ryūkyūan religion

D. C. Holtom stated that priestesses ( Okinawan: ) of the Ryukyu Kingdom wore necklaces early in the 20th century for ceremonial purposes, but provides no other details.

See also

* – a similarly shaped jewel found in the Korean Peninsula.
* ''Lingling-o'' – similarly shaped jade, wood, or metal pendants from various ancient Austronesian cultures.
* '' Mamuta'' – an enemy from the ''Pikmin'' series of games aesthetically based on .
* – a wish-fulfilling jewel within both Hindu and Buddhist traditions, said by some to be the equivalent of the philosopher's stone in Western alchemy. It is one of several Mani Jewel images found in Buddhist scripture.
* ''Pig dragon'' or – zoomorphic stone artifacts produced in neolithic China with a similar c- or comma-like shape.

References

{{Shinto shrine

Archaeological cultures of East Asia
Archaeology of death
Archaeology of Japan
Beadwork
Hardstone carving
Japanese monarchy
Japanese words and phrases
Jōmon period
Kofun period
Mounds
Shinto religious objects
State ritual and ceremonies
Amulets
Talismans
Magic items
Yayoi period