The is a

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 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 ...

, located in the Mutajiri neighborhood of the city of Munakata,

Fukuoka Prefecture is a Prefectures of Japan, prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyūshū. Fukuoka Prefecture has a population of 5,109,323 (1 June 2019) and has a geographic area of 4,986 Square kilometre, km2 (1,925 sq mi). Fukuoka Prefecture borders ...

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

. The tumulus was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1976.

Overview

The Sakurakyō Kofun is a , which is shaped like a keyhole, having one square end and one circular end, when viewed from above. It is the center of a cluster of approximately 80 burial mounds facing the

Genkai Sea The is a body of water that comprises the southwestern tip of the Sea of Japan and borders the northern coasts of Fukuoka and Saga Sagas are prose stories and histories, composed in Iceland and to a lesser extent elsewhere in Scandinavia. T ...

on a hill with an elevation of about 42 meters. It has a total length is about 41 meters; the diameter of the posterior circular portion is about 18 meters, the height is about 4 meters, and the width of the anterior rectangular portion is about 10 meters with a height of 2.5 meters. The tumulus is orientated to the south, and the west side is slightly deformed. No ''

fukiishi ( or "roofing stone") were a means of covering burial chambers and Tumulus, 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 consi ...

'' or shards of ''

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 ...

'' have been found, nor has any trace of a moat been discovered. The horizontal-entry cave-style stone

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 ...

is a multi-chambered structure in the center of the posterior circle, opening to the west. The back room is 3.7 meters long, about 2.2 meters wide, and about 3.6 meters high, with a stone house shaped

sarcophagus A sarcophagus (: sarcophagi or sarcophaguses) is a coffin, most commonly carved in stone, and usually displayed above ground, though it may also be buried. The word ''sarcophagus'' comes from the Greek language, Greek wikt:σάρξ, σάρξ ...

attached to the rear wall, and the front room is about half the size of the back room. It was already opened in 1673, and no

grave goods Grave goods, in archaeology and anthropology, are items buried along with a body. They are usually personal possessions, supplies to smooth the deceased's journey into an afterlife, or offerings to gods. Grave goods may be classed by researche ...

have been passed down. The tumulus is a

decorated kofun is the term used for kofun or ancient Japanese tombs ornamented with Japanese painting, painted or Japanese sculpture, carved decoration. The tombs take the form of tumuli or earthen mounds piled over stone chambers as well as caves excavated from ...

. The pillar stones and back wall are divided into sections with a triangular pattern made of vertical, horizontal, and diagonal line carvings, and each section is painted with red, yellow, and blue pigments, and the upper part is painted red. Judging from the structure of the burial chamber and the shape of the tumulus, it is believed to have been constructed in the 6th century, or the last Kofun period. From the five small circular tumuli surrounding the main tumulus, iron arrowheads, metal utensils (bow fittings), and shards of

Sue ware was a blue-gray form of stoneware pottery fired at high temperature, which was produced in Japan and southern Korea during the Kofun, Nara, and Heian periods of Japanese history. It was initially used for funerary and ritual objects, and orig ...

and

Haji ware is a type of plain, unglazed, reddish-brown Japanese pottery or earthenware that was produced during the Kofun, Nara, and Heian periods of Japanese history. It was used for both ritual and utilitarian purposes, and many examples have been found ...

pottery have been found. Although many decorated ''kofun'' have been found along the coast of the

Ariake Sea The is a body of salt water surrounded by Fukuoka, Saga, Nagasaki, and Kumamoto Prefectures, all of which lie on the island of Kyūshū in Japan. It is the largest bay in Kyūshū. Its deepest point is only about 50 meters (165 ft) deep, and ext ...

in the Kyushu, this is the only one to have been found in along the coast of the Genkai Sea, and its presence outside the distribution area for decorative ''kofun'' suggests cultural or political interaction between the regions. This ''kofun'' was included in the

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...

World Heritage Site World Heritage Sites are landmarks and areas with legal protection under an treaty, international treaty administered by UNESCO for having cultural, historical, or scientific significance. The sites are judged to contain "cultural and natural ...

Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata Region , officially Sacred Island of Okinoshima and Associated Sites in the Munakata Region, is a group of sites in northwest Kyūshū, Japan, that was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2017, under criteria World Heritage Site#Cultural criter ...

submission in 2009, but was later removed from the constituent assets when it was officially registered in 2017. The tumulus is approximately 2.4 kilometers northwest of

Munakata Shrine is a collection of three Shinto shrines located in Munakata, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. It is the head of the approximately 6,000 Munakata shrines all over the country. Although the name Munakata Taisha refers to all three shrines—Hetsu-gū, N ...

or 7.4 kilometers (15 minutes by car from

JR Kyushu The , also referred to as , is one of the seven constituent companies of Japan Railways Group (JR Group). It operates intercity rail services within Kyushu, Japan. It formerly operated the Beetle hydrofoil service across the Tsushima Strait be ...

Kagoshima Main Line The is a major railway line operated by the Kyushu Railway Company (JR Kyushu) between Mojiko Station, Mojikō in Kitakyushu, and Kagoshima Station in Kagoshima, Kagoshima, Kagoshima City, at the southern end of Kyushu. Until March 13, 2004, it ...

Tōgō Station is a passenger railway station located in the city of Munakata, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. It is operated by JR Kyushu. Lines The station is served by the Kagoshima Main Line and is located 50.7 km from the starting point of the line a ...

References

External links

Munakata City home page
{{in lang, ja Historic Sites of Japan History of Fukuoka Prefecture Decorated kofun Zenpokoenfun Munakata, Fukuoka

Overview

See also

References

External links