In 2019, the Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Group in Osaka Prefecture was registered as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, bringing renewed attention to kofun burial mounds.
Haniwa are impossible to avoid when talking about kofun.
Did you know that haniwa originated in Okayama Prefecture?
In fact, Kibi (the area from Okayama Prefecture to eastern Hiroshima Prefecture) is an area rich in archaeological sites and kofun, alongside Kinai and Izumo.
In the past, Kibi was an area ruled by one of the most powerful forces in Japan.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum displays many valuable artifacts excavated from archaeological sites in the Kibi region.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum is one of the leading cultural facilities around the Bikan Historical Area, alongside the Ohara Museum of Art and the Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft.
The Bikan Historical Area is a townscape where buildings and atmosphere from the Edo and Meiji periods remain. Among them, the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum stands out as a museum of materials related to the Paleolithic period through ancient times.
Also, the building of the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum itself is worth a closer look!
The information presented here was current when this article was published in April 2022. Please note that it may differ from current information.
What is the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum? An archaeological museum exhibiting sites from the Kibi region, from the Paleolithic to the Kofun period
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum is located almost in the center of the Kurashiki River area of the Bikan Historical Area.
It is situated right in front of Nakabashi Bridge, with the “Kurashikikan Tourist Information Center” across the bridge.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum is an archaeological museum displaying numerous sites from the Kibi region in a building with Kurashiki’s characteristic namako walls.
The exhibits mainly consist of artifacts excavated from sites in the Kibi region, which extended from Okayama Prefecture to eastern Hiroshima Prefecture, and its surrounding areas.
There are also exhibits from other prefectures and places such as Peru.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum opened in November 1950.
The museum was proposed by Ohara Soichiro and Hara Sumiji, and opened with the cooperation of Kuraray, Kurabo, the Kurashiki Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Kurashiki City, and others.
Preservation and improvement work along the Kurashiki River began in 1955, and the “Kurashiki City Traditional Scenic Beauty Preservation Ordinance” was enacted in 1967.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum was one of the first facilities to preserve and make use of a historic building.
That is why the Kurashiki Museum of Folkcraft, which opened around the same time by making use of a historic building, and the Ohara Museum of Art, which opened before the war, are considered the three major cultural facilities of the Bikan Historical Area.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum building is a rice storehouse belonging to an Edo-period merchant, and a symbol of the Bikan Historical Area
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum is notable not only for its exhibits, but also because the building itself has historical value.
The museum building was converted from a storehouse (rice storehouse) belonging to the Koyama family of Hamadaya, a wealthy merchant who prospered during the Edo period.
It is a historic building constructed during the Edo period.
▼The building is covered in namako walls from top to bottom.
Of the storehouses visible from outside around the Bikan Historical Area, this is the only one with namako walls from top to bottom.
Namako walls are expensive, giving an indication of Hamadaya’s wealth.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum building is truly emblematic of the Bikan Historical Area.
Before going inside, take a good look at the building’s exterior, too.
▼The new wing of the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum (on the north side) was added during the Showa period.
The front (south) section is the former rice storehouse.
▼Incidentally, Ryori Ryokan Tsurugata, next door to the west of the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum, was once the main house of the Koyama family.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum exhibits are divided into four spaces
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum has two floors.
The first floor has the reception desk and office.
There are also “Japan Heritage goods exclusive to the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum,” which have been on sale since 2021.
Some of you may think you have seen the “haniwa” at the entrance somewhere before.
It served as a kind of mascot for Gallery Takenoko Mura, which was located in the Bikan Historical Area, but the gallery closed at the end of 2021. It was later donated to the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum and now serves as the museum’s mascot.
▼There are four exhibition spaces, with exhibits arranged by period or theme in each room.
| Room 1 | Paleolithic and Jomon periods |
|---|---|
| Room 2 | Yayoi period |
| Room 3 | Kofun, Asuka, and Nara periods |
| Room 4 | Exhibits from Peru |
▼In the former rice storehouse section, some parts, such as the beams, remain as they were, evoking a sense of history.
▼Also, be sure to take a look at the cases and shelves displaying the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum’s exhibits.
The wooden cases and shelves have been in use since the museum opened in 1950.
For that reason, they have historical value.
▼By the way, when you see the exhibits from Peru, don’t you wonder, “Why Peru all of a sudden?”
In fact, Ohara, who was involved in establishing the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum, received these valuable materials from Peru from an acquaintance.
It would be interesting to compare the materials and exhibits from each period in Japan with those from each period in Peru.
By the way, photography of exhibits inside the museum is permitted only for purposes such as commemorative photos or personal reference.
If you would like to use the photos on a website or for a similar purpose, please obtain permission from a staff member in advance.
Curators at the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum can also provide explanations
Some of the archaeological museum's exhibits can be difficult to understand unless you also picture their historical context.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum can arrange for a curator to give you a brief explanation.
If you would like one, ask at the reception desk when you arrive.
However, please note that a curator may not be available.
If no curator is available, you will not be able to receive an explanation.
Highlights of the exhibits at the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum is notable for displaying a very large number of excavated artifacts and other materials.
Here are some highlights, organized by period.
Paleolithic period: Stone tools excavated from the Washuzan Site
First, let's look at highlights from the Paleolithic period (also called the Pre-Pottery period).
▼The highlight of the Paleolithic period is the stone tools excavated from the Washuzan Site.
Washuzan is a mountain southeast of Kurashiki City, where the Seto-Ohashi Bridge crosses.
This is a site where people who hunted in the Washuzan area during the Paleolithic period once lived.
The Washuzan Site was the first Paleolithic site confirmed in western Japan and is extremely important.
Many knife-shaped stone tools and other artifacts have been excavated.
The stone tools from the Washuzan Site are made of a stone called sanukite.
Its name comes from Sanuki, which was a major source of the stone.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum once also took part in excavations and surveys in other prefectures.
▼Through those connections, stone tools from the Fukui Cave in Sasebo City, Nagasaki Prefecture, are also on display.
The type of stone used for tools differs from region to region.
The stone tools from Sasebo on display are made of obsidian.
The sanukite tools excavated from the Washuzan Site and sites in Kagawa Prefecture are displayed alongside the tools from Fukui Cave in Sasebo.
This makes it possible to compare the sanukite tools with those made of obsidian.
By the way, don't stone knives give you the impression that they aren't very sharp?
Looking at them as they were found during excavation, they do seem as though they wouldn't cut very well.
However, apparently, when stone tools are recreated, they are remarkably sharp.
Knife-shaped stone tools seem ideal for preparing meat and other foods.
Jomon period: Jomon pottery from the Satogi Shell Mound and Kojima Bay
The highlight of the Jomon-period exhibits is Jomon pottery.
It's familiar to everyone, since it's always covered in elementary school.
A great deal of Jomon pottery has also been excavated in the Kibi region.
The Jomon period lasted for more than 10,000 years.
Jomon refers to patterns made using rope, and these patterns changed over the course of the long Jomon period.
By looking at the patterns and shapes, it is possible to estimate when in the Jomon period an item was made.
Among the Jomon pottery on display, notable pieces include a deep bowl-shaped vessel excavated from the Satogi Shell Mound in Funao, within the city, and a bowl-shaped vessel discovered on the seabed of Kojima Bay.
▼The deep bowl-shaped vessel from the Satogi Shell Mound is thought to date to the Middle Jomon period.
▼Its striking pattern combines vertical rope marks with thick, clearly defined rope marks.
In addition to shells, pottery, ornaments, and even human bones were excavated from the Satogi Shell Mound.
I had thought of shell mounds as places where people dumped rubbish, but it seems that all sorts of things besides shells are found there.
▼The bowl-shaped vessel from the seabed of Kojima Bay also dates to the Middle Jomon period.
▼It has a more complex rope pattern than the pottery from the Satogi Shell Mound.
The bowl-shaped vessel from the seabed of Kojima Bay was discovered intact.
Pottery is usually excavated in fragments, so an unbroken vessel is extremely valuable.
Yayoi period: Special pedestal vessel excavated from the Kuromiya Otsuka Kofun
In the Yayoi period, iron and bronze tools came into use, and rice cultivation flourished.
The Kibi region had alluvial plains and large rivers suited to rice cultivation, giving rise to powerful forces.
Furthermore, ironworking and salt production also flourished, and Kibi developed greatly.
When you think of the Yayoi period, do the Yayoi pottery and bronze bells you learned about in textbooks come to mind?
▼Of course, Yayoi pottery and bronze bells have also been excavated in Kibi.
▼Another striking item was a house-shaped vessel on a pedestal excavated from the Myotoiwa Site in Shosimmachi, within the city.
However, the most noteworthy feature of the Yayoi-period exhibits from Kibi is the special pedestal pottery.
▼The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum displays special pedestal pottery from the late Yayoi period, excavated at Kuromiya Otsuka in Ozaki, Mabi, Kurashiki City.
Special pedestal pottery is a type of earthenware that originated in Kibi during the late Yayoi period and began to be used then.
A special jar was placed on top of the special pedestal pottery, and the pieces were used to decorate Yayoi-period burial mounds, the precursors of kofun burial mounds.
Incidentally, special pedestal pottery was also excavated at the Tatetsuki Site in the Sho district of Kurashiki City, earlier than the finds at Kuromiya Otsuka.
The finds from the Tatetsuki Site are held by Okayama University in Kita Ward, Okayama City.
Was Kibi the origin of haniwa?
Why is the special pedestal pottery a highlight?
Because Kibi was the origin of haniwa.
You may know about haniwa, but did you know that they originated in Kibi?
The special pedestal pottery used in Kibi eventually developed into cylindrical haniwa in the Kinai region, in what is now Nara and Osaka, and was placed around kofun burial mounds.
Furthermore, cylindrical haniwa developed into figurative haniwa shaped like people, animals, and buildings.
When people hear the word haniwa, they generally imagine haniwa shaped like people, animals, or buildings.
In July 2019, the Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Group in Osaka Prefecture was registered as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Site, attracting widespread attention.
The keyhole-shaped kofun that represent the Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Group are a cultural tradition that originated in Yamato.
On the other hand, the ancestors of the haniwa arranged on top of keyhole-shaped kofun were part of a cultural tradition that originated in Kibi.
This suggests that Kibi had close ties with the Yamato regime at the time.
Kofun period: Iron artifacts and other finds from Kanakurayama Kofun
A highlight of the Kofun-period exhibits is the finds from Kanakurayama Kofun in Naka Ward, Okayama City.
▼Kanakurayama Kofun is a keyhole-shaped burial mound located roughly in the middle of a mountain called Misaoyama.
Kanakurayama Kofun is the fourth-largest kofun in Okayama Prefecture.
It is thought to have been built between the 4th century and the beginning of the 5th century, in the middle Kofun period.
Kanakurayama Kofun is about 165 meters long, making it the largest kofun of its time west of the Kinki region.
Furthermore, as of 2019, it was the largest kofun to have been excavated and whose interior had been revealed.
▼Among the finds, the many iron artifacts are particularly noteworthy.
▼They are mainly tools used in everyday life, such as farming implements and carpentry tools.
The following iron artifacts are on display.
- Sickles and hand sickles
- Plowshares
- Axes
- Woodworking knives
- Chisels
- Fishhooks
▼The iron artifacts were placed in a container called a haniwa-style lidded container and buried as grave goods in the kofun.
▼Another noteworthy find is the triangular-rimmed mirror with three deities and three animals, whose place of discovery is unknown.
You may have seen or heard of the “triangular-rimmed mirror with deities and animals” in a textbook.
“Triangular-rimmed” refers to the mirror’s rim, which protrudes in a triangular shape.
Another characteristic is that the mirror is decorated with patterns of deities and animals.
Was ironmaking in Kibi earlier than in Izumo?
It is said that Kibi Province prospered because ironmaking flourished there.
When it comes to ironmaking, tatara ironmaking using iron sand from the Izumo region and the Chugoku Mountains is well known. In fact, iron was being smelted in ancient Kibi earlier than in Izumo.
Tatara ironmaking is thought to have begun in the 11th century.
In Kibi, iron was already being smelted from iron ore in the 6th century.
The Senbiki Kanakurodani Site in Soja City is said to be the site of this ironmaking.
Kibi seems to have been an advanced region in Japan at the time.
Nara period: Yatabe Masutari’s land-purchase deed
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum also has exhibits from the Nara period.
▼A highlight is the “Yatabe Masutari’s land-purchase deed,” which was excavated in Ozaki, Mabi, Kurashiki City, and passed down through the years.
The name means “the land-purchase deed of a person named Yatabe Masutari.”
The inscription reads as follows.
Its meaning is as follows.
Shirakabe no Hitotomihime, a household member of Yatabe Iwayasu, the head of a household living in Yata Township, Shimotsumichi District, Bitchu Province, had died. On October 16 in the seventh year of Tenpyo Hoji, Yatabe Masutari, head of Yata Township, bought land for her grave and made this brick as a deed for the purchase.
Bitchu Province, Shimotsumichi District, Yata Township corresponds to the area around Yata in present-day Mabi, Kurashiki City.
The proper names and terms mean the following.
| Bitchu Province, Shimotsumichi District, Yata Township | A place name corresponding to the area around Yata in present-day Mabi, Kurashiki City |
|---|---|
| Head of household | The head of a family |
| Household member | A member of a family |
| Tenpyo Hoji | An era name used during the Nara period, from around 757 to 765. The 16th day of the 10th month in the seventh year of Tenpyo Hoji corresponds to mid-November 763 in the Gregorian calendar |
| Head of township | The head who governed a township, similar to a present-day mayor |
| Brick | An ancient building material, a type of brick |
A land-purchase deed is a document showing that land (a burial plot) was purchased to build a grave in the afterlife.
The deed was made of durable brick so that it would last a long time.
This shows that people already had a concept of the afterlife during this period.
Only two land-purchase deeds have been found nationwide, including the one from Yata Township, making this a valuable artifact.
The Kurashiki Archaeological Museum has many other exhibits as well.
A quick look takes about 20 minutes, but if you take your time, even an hour may not be enough.
We spoke with Ban Yuko, a curator at the Kurashiki Archaeological Museum.
Kurashiki Archaeological Museum Public Interest Incorporated Foundation: Information
| Name | Kurashiki Archaeological Museum Public Interest Incorporated Foundation |
|---|---|
| Address | 1-3-13 Chuo, Kurashiki City |
| Contact | 086-422-1542 |
| Parking | None |
| Opening hours | 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m. (admission until 4:30 p.m.) |
| Closed | Monday and Tuesday Open if a public holiday falls on these days Closed during the year-end and New Year holidays |
| Admission (tax included) | Adults: 500 yen (groups: 400 yen) High school and university students: 400 yen (groups: 320 yen) Elementary and junior high school students: 300 yen (groups: 240 yen) Visitors with disabilities: 240 yen Preschool children: Free ※Group rates apply to groups of 20 or more ※Fees may change for special and temporary exhibitions ※Visitors with disabilities must present a disability certificate to receive the discounted rate (applies to the visitor and up to one accompanying person) |
| Payment methods |
|
| Reservations | Accepted |
| Smoking | Entire facility is non-smoking |
| Restrooms | Western-style toilets |
| Website | Kurashiki Archaeological Museum |
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Bitchu Province, Shimotsumichi District, Yata Township, head of household Yatabe Iwayasu
Household member Shirakabe no Hitotomihime’s burial land
In the seventh year of Tenpyo Hoji, the year of the Water Hare, on the sixteenth day of the tenth month, Yata Township
Deed of land purchase by Yatabe Masutari, head of Yata Township