This paper approaches the system of "value", or what prehistoric people considered "valuable" or "significant", by examining correlations among several aspects of elite mortuary practices in fifth century Japan. These selected aspects are considered "significant" and "valuable" by contemporary archaeologists; if, however, an "important" aspect correlates statistically with other "important" aspects, it is possible to assume that people of the fifth century also considered these aspects important and valuable. The subjects I have adopted for testing hypotheses concerning the value system are types of haniwa clay objects and the positions where they stood on the surface of Roji Tomb, a keyhole-shaped tumulus in Fukuoka Prefecture, northern Kyushu, dated to the beginning of the fifth century.
It is a widely accepted interpretation that people of the Kofun Period considered the circular portion of a keyhole tomb more important than the rest of the mound, because it contains the main burial chamber and is taller than the rest of the mound until the fifth century. It is also easy to imagine that locations on the mound surface closer to the main burial chamber were considered more important.
In order to test these interpretations, I applied the concept of "degree of elaboration" to an analysis of haniwa clay objects. The higher the degree of elaboration, the more effort people put into the preparation of the object, and the greater the possibility that people considered the object more important than those with lower degrees of elaboration. Attributes of higher degrees of elaboration include a stepped rim (e.g. Fig. 1, No. 15) as opposed to a simple rim (e.g. Fig. 1, No. 1), a more abstract and advanced cylindrical shape (Fig. 23) as opposed to more a traditional pot shape (Figs. 1 and 2), and a narrower space between haniwa standing in line as opposed to a wider space. If the space was narrow, more haniwa were necessary for filling the same length of line, indicating more labor required.
If the interpretation mentioned above is correct for the fifth century, then we can expect haniwa with higher degrees of elaboration to be found on the rear portion of the mound and particularly near the main burial chamber. The results of my statistical analysis clearly show that those with higher degrees of elaboration were placed on the round portion and particularly in an area close to the main burial chamber. This suggests that people in the fifth century indeed has a system of "value" in which the round portion of a keyhole tomb was considered more important than the rest of the mound.

View full abstract

This paper presents new classificatory and chronological frameworks for Kinai-style horizontal burial chambers in order to clarify how these burial chambers evolved in sixth and seventh century Japan. Because they were incorporated into elite burial mounds, the appearance, spread, and disappearance of different types of these chambers give clues to understanding the political history of the sixth and seventh centuries. More importantly, by correlating the locations of different types of burial chambers with territories of different families of early "aristocrats" mentioned in eighth century Japanese historic sources, it is possible to some extent to hypothesize which aristocratic families adopted which type of chamber.
I classify the Kinai-style horizontal chambers into three types, namely A, B, and C, each of which is further classified into three, six and three sub-types respectively. Owing to the placement of sue stoneware in the burial chambers, it is possible to devise a three-stage chronological framework of these chambers by correlating them with a well-established chronology for sue (Figs. 5 to 7). A significant aspect of my chronological framework is that temporal changes of different types and subtypes of the chambers are seen to present a multi-linear evolution, rather than unilinear change as previously argued. It is therefore important to note that different types and sub-types of the burial chambers existed at the same time because of distinctive traditions in the technology of construction. The general trend of horizontal chambers is from the use of numerous skull-sized natural stones to fewer but larger rocks (more than three meters in height), and finally to well-shaped rectangular slabs. However, while some chambers were constructed with state-of-the-art technology, others were made using older methods.
Within this framework, it appears that the sub-type B-II burial chambers were always dominat over other sub-types, because the B-II sub-type chambers were considerably larger than other chambers, and because the B-II sub-type chambers were also constructed with state-of-the-art technology throughout the first (early sixth century) and second (late sixth century) stages.
This sub-type of chamber was apparently adopted and developed by the Mononobe family, because large examples of this sub-type tend to be located in their territory. However, in the third stage (early seventh century), burial chambers of this sub-type were adopted by the Soga family as evidenced by a shift in their locations. This shift may be related to the historic fact that the Soga family received wives from the Mononobe family from around 600. This sub-type was adopted again by the Mononobe family in the 640s and 650s after the Soga family lost its political influence in 645. This suggests that technology to build specific types of large burial chambers was monopolized by a limited number of elite families at any particular time. Accordingly, such detailed analyses of the Kinai-style horizontal stone chambers contribute to our understanding about the political history of the sixth and seventh centuries, a period when the descriptions of written historic sources are fragmentary.

View full abstract

A six-stage typology of saddles decorated with metal fittings is proposed as a contribution to the chronological study of the Kofun Period. Although the chronological framework for this period has already been established using frequency seriations of a variety of objects, from pottery to iron armor, Japanese archaeologists can increase the precision of this chronology by taking into consideration typologies of a greater variety of objects. In particular, this study may help increase the precision of the chronology for the middle and late Kofun Period (fifth and sixth centuries), for which typologies of horse trappings, including saddles, have not been established.
Prior to devising a chronological framework, I classify saddles with metal fittings into four classes: wooden saddles; gilt bronze iron-covered saddles; iron-covered saddles; gilt bronze-covered saddles. The fittings taken into consideration are the iso (the portion of the saddle bow in contact with horse's back), yama (the outer edge of the saddle bow), umi (the middle part of the saddle bow), edge-frames and nails, and shiode (hip strap buckles ) (Fig. 1). The four classes of saddles are further divided into three, six, two, and two types respectively, based on characteristics of these five kinds of fittings.
The six stages are as follows: stage I (middle fifth century), marked by the adoption of saddles in Japan; II (late fifth century) marked by the adoption of gilt bronze iron-covered saddles; stage III (early sixth century) characterized by the use of shiode consisting of two separate parts, making the buckle very flexible; stage IV (middle sixth century) characterized by the use of shiode without a middle pin for the ring, which suggests a different way of tying hip straps to the saddle; stage V (late sixth century) featured by an iso made in one part rather than two, indicating simpler production; stage VI (end of the sixth century) characterized by the adoption of shiode buckles for both the front and rear saddle bows (until stage V, shiode were attached only to the rear), which might be related to the functions of hip straps and collars.

View full abstract

The large-scale political changes represented by the formation of the Ritsuryo Order affected the production of sue ware in a variety of ways; arguing backwards from this, it should be possible to reconstruct one aspect of that political order by studying changes in sue production. Assuming that kilns used for firing both roof tiles and sue held the key to changes in ceramic production for this period, and taking as specific example the production of roof tiles and sue in Owari, this paper examines the relationship between the formation of the Ritsuryo Order and ceramic production in outlying regions.
Whereas a new system of production having one kiln per kori was established in Hokuriku and elsewhere in the first half of the seventh century, through the implementation of new economic policies during Suiko's reign, change is virtually undetectable at the Owari Sanage Kiln where the provincial governor's authority was strong, and response to the new policy relatively weak. In the latter half of the century, however, regional permeation of centralized policy was reinforced through the formalization of the political system, and the coordination of various policies, including those involving Buddhism and economic production, as a single entity.
In order to drive a wedge into the local control of the Owari provincial governor, the central government established a temple at Higashibata as a means of gaining leverage over powerful families in the immediate area. The Number 2 Kiln at Shino'oka was then built in order to supply tiles for this temple. In opening up the new Shino'oka Kiln, molds for eave tiles were brought from Okuyama Kume Temple, probably together with a number of artisans, while sue craftsmen were also taken from the Sanage Kiln controlled by the provincial governor and applied to the development of the new site. Subsequently, the central government continued to transfer roof tile technology to the Bihoku Kiln, while sue produced there was also taken to the Asuka Ishigami site and other locations in the Kinai core region. In this sense it is possible to regard the policies toward Buddhism and economic production as a single entity, symbolized by kilns that doubled for firing both roof tiles and sue.
This kind of development in the latter seventh century is seen in many places, such as the Kosugi Maruyama Kiln in Toyama, the Zenkoji Kiln in Fukushima, and the Bokewara site in Shiga. Most of these kiln sites later developed, through the implantation of iron smelting technology, into multifaceted industrial complexes. Taken as a whole, these production sites may be seen as having been created through the enforcement of a single policy, and can be divided in the "newly developed" (Shino'oka, Bokewara) and "reorganized" (Zenkoji, Kosugi Maruyama) types. In the mid eighth century, however, these production sites waned, and a wave of restructuring swept through. In Owari, whereas the Bihoku Kiln declined on the one hand, the Sanage Kiln was incorporated into the Ritsuryo Order on the other, and production continued in steady fashion.

View full abstract

This paper discusses the management and maintenance of an urban center in early medieval Japan (twelfth and thirteenth centuries), with particular reference to the drainage system in Kamakura, the political center of Japan between 1180 and 1333. As population of Kamakura grew in the thirteenth century, residents had to spread into alluvial lowland, which later became an important area for the shogunate. In the process, a well-planned drainage system was adopted, which is evident at numerous archaeological sites in present-day Kamakura City. Nonetheless, the Azumakagami, a chronicle of the Kamakura shogunate, records that many floods hit Kamakura. It has become apparent archaeologically that well-constructed drainage ditches filled up with garbage, pottery sherds, and animal bones. Historically, the Kamakura shogunate issued a decree in 1261 prohibiting the discarding of "sick people, orphans, dead bodies, as well as the carcasses of oxen, cows, and horses on and along the streets." All these indicate that the drainage system in Kamakura was not well maintained and managed by the shogunate, and it may be supposed that this poor maintenance contributed to the floods that destroyed houses and districts, as recorded in the Azumakagami. One reason why the government did not prevent people from discarding garbage in the drainage ditches may be the belief shared by the shogunate and residents of Kamakura in the power of water to wash away impurities.

View full abstract