Japan Travel - Prehistoric Japanese Jomon Village of Sannai Maruyama

Sannai Maruyama is a prehistoric Japanese village of the Jomon Era (140000-300 BCE) in Aomori Prefecture that existed from around 3900-2300 BCE. It began as a temporary camp for the hunting and gathering culture known as the Jomon after their rope-marked pottery. In time, Sannai Maruyama became a more permanent dwelling and is thought to have been a trading center where perhaps Jomon people from many places in Japan gathered at specific times. Over 700 homes have been discovered along with a longhouse and what might possibly have been a watch tower to watch for ships with trade goods from other parts of the country. The ruins had been known about since the Edo Era (1615-1867) but no real work had been done at the site until the 1990s. Now a number of buildings have been reconstructed to give visitors a sense of what the site once looked like so long ago. This is from the last time I went there several years ago so not all the information is up to date with recent findings and theories.