”空白の４世紀”の謎に迫る…岡山市の操山にある古墳が国の史跡に指定　専門家に聞く歴史的価値【岡山】 (26/06/19 18:00)

A burial mound located in the foothills of Okayama City has been newly designated a national historic site as a valuable artifact that sheds light on the mystery of the "blank 4th century." We visited the site with an expert to find out more about it. Mt. Misao, located east of central Okayama City, is a hilly area with an elevation of less than 200 meters. The burial mound is situated within this Mt. Misao. After walking for about 30 minutes from the entrance to the hiking trail in Sawada, Naka Ward… (Reporter Yuki Maekawa) "We've reached the top of the mountain. It just looks like a mountain with undulations, so I brought a reconstruction drawing. The round part of the burial mound is along this line. You can roughly tell that the front part is on the left side of the screen. It's huge and on top of a mountain, so it's difficult to grasp the whole thing. It's fun to observe." This burial mound, called Kinzozan Kofun, is thought to be the tomb of an ancient Okayama power holder. What is exposed is the stone-built space where the body was placed. This is a keyhole-shaped burial mound, a type of tomb built throughout Japan during the Kofun period to demonstrate power. Excavations by the Okayama City Board of Education have revealed its total length to be 158 meters. Furthermore, traces of religious rituals have been found around the constriction between the front and rear sections. Comparing the excavated haniwa (clay figures), pottery, and burial goods with those from other regions, it was determined that the mound was constructed in the latter half of the 4th century and had connections with the Kinki region, where the Yamato Kingdom was located, and the Korean Peninsula. This indicates that in the 4th century, a period of Japan shrouded in mystery due to a lack of written records, Okayama possessed enough power to interact with powerful distant regions. (Fumiya Samukawa, Cultural Properties Division, Okayama City Board of Education) "The discovery of materials demonstrating the strong connection between Kibi/Okayama and the Yamato court during the Kofun period has allowed us to assign historical value to the site." Speaking of tombs of ancient Okayama power holders, the Tsukuriyama Kofun, a keyhole-shaped burial mound built in the early 5th century, about 15 kilometers west of Mt. Misao, is famous. At 350 meters long, it is the fourth largest in Japan. It has been designated a national historic site as evidence of Okayama's considerable power in the 5th century. In fact, the Kinzoyama Kofun, at 158 ​​meters long, was the largest in the Chugoku, Shikoku, and Kyushu regions during the 4th century when it was built. This indicates the situation before Okayama's power flourished in the 5th century. On June 19th, the National Council for Cultural Affairs recommended to the Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology that the Kinzoyama Kofun be designated a national historic site. (Fumiya Samukawa, Cultural Properties Division, Okayama City Board of Education) "We believe it has been recognized as a treasure to be proud of, shedding light on the region's history. Even now, it's accessible, so we hope people will touch it and reflect on the role of cultural properties." A clue to the ancient appearance of Okayama, located in a familiar rural area. This is the 49th national historic site designation in Okayama Prefecture, and the first in 18 years since the Hikozaki Shell Mound in 2008.