"NIHON KÔKOGAKU" 19 Abstracts
[A] : Article, [RN] : Research Notes, [PR] : Preliminary Excavation Report, [BR] : Book Review
| [A] | Akihiko Kaneko | 
Transegalitarian Society and the Mortuary System of the Kamegaoka Culture: The Mortuary System in the Northern Part of the Tohoku Region in the Final Jomon Period | 1-28 |
|---|---|---|---|
| [A] | Yoshimitsu Kajiwara |
Research on Provincial Kilns Used for Firing Both Roof-Tiles and Pottery | 29-50 |
| [A] | Kaname Maekawa |
Some Aspects of the Temple Settlements in Medieval Omi | 51-72 |
| [A] | Hiroko Yoshimoto and Makoto Watanabe | Basic Research on Jomon Deep Pots Decorated with Masks and Figures (Additional Materials 2) | 73-94 |
| [RN] | Fumio Ueda |
A Historical Study of Standing Pillar Rituals: The Origins of Standing Pillar Features and Sacred Tree Beliefs | 95-114 |
| [PR] | Ji Minju |
A Preliminary Report on Excavations at the Gongju Tanji-ri Side-Chamber Tomb Cluster | 115-127 |
| [PR] | Koji Fujii |
Excavations at Dainichiyama Mound 35 | 129-141 |
| [PR] | Masahiro Yamagami | A Shugo's Castle: Excavations at the Okishio Castle Site | 143-153 |
| [BR] | Katsuhiko Kiyama |
Isao Usuki, Tekki Jidai no Tohoku Ajia [North East Asia in the Iron Age]. | 155-158 |
Transegalitarian Society and the Mortuary System of the Kamegaoka Culture: The Mortuary System in the Northern Part of the Tohoku Region in the Final Jomon Period
Akihiko KanekoIn this paper I criticize the studies of Ooki Nakamura, the authority in this field (sections 2-3), and describe the mortuary system of the Kamegaoka culture, which was a culture of the Tohoku region in the Final Jomon period characterized by distinctive, high-quality ceramics and other artifacts (sections 4-5(1)). I argue that the mortuary system was influenced by the settlement system, which was largely determined by the topography of the sites of the Kamegaoka culture (section 5(2)). Finally, I discuss whether the mortuary system of the Kamegaoka culture was that of a transegalitarian society (section 6).
I develop three main criticisms of Nakamura's work: the criteria for distinguishing graves, the criteria for distinguishing pit-burial clusters, and the criteria for identifying transegalitarian societies. Although Nakamura's criteria for distinguishing graves reflect various levels of certainty, he treated them all equally. In contrast, I propose to give criterion points according to degree of certainty. Following this, we should attempt to distinguish graves from pits in the next procedure. Does a pit have the same characteristics as the criteria for distinguishing graves? How many points in total do they come to according to a list of criteria giving points based on certainty? Do the total points exceed those of graves (5 points)?
Nakamura treats all pits in a group of pits that were dug in a comparatively short period of time as graves if one or several pits in the group had the same characteristics as the criteria for distinguishing graves. While I sympathize with Nakamura's hope to advance mortuary archaeology beyond the limitations of the data, I believe this approach is too rough and attempt to consider more objective evaluations. My approach centers on the "probability" of mortuary interpretations. I count the points of each pit in the group that was treated as a grave by Nakamura according to the previous list of criteria. The total points are termed "A". As I argue that pits with more than 5 points can be classified as graves, if all pits in the group are graves, the total is the number of pits multiplied by 5 points. This total is termed "B". A÷B thus reflects the "probability" of mortuary interpretation.
I point out that there were dual mortuary systems in Kamegaoka society that were divided by dual settlement systems caused by lifestyle differences between open and mountainous regions. I conclude that we cannot find sufficient evidence of a transegalitarian society in the mortuary system of the Kamegaoka culture.
Key words:
Final Jomon, Tohoku region, mortuary system, topography, social complexity.
Research on Provincial Kilns Used for Firing Both Roof-Tiles and Pottery
Yoshimitsu KajiwaraFrom the mid-Nara period, provincial Kokubunji temples were built all over Japan. Most of the roof-tiles required for these temples were produced in special workshops administered by the provincial governors (kokushi). In previous research, however, I have shown that when Kokubunji construction began to decline, and with it the demand for roof-tiles, each province differed as to whether the existing workshops were maintained or else were shut down and craftsmen brought in from elsewhere when tiles were required for temple repairs and so forth. In this paper I primarily attempt to analyze the different histories of Kokubunji tile workshops by comparing provinces where tiles were produced in association with ceramics with those where they were made separately.
Totoumi, Musashi, Kozuke, Shimotsuke, Sado, Mutsu and Dewa are provinces where ceramics were produced in the same kilns as tiles in the Kokubunji roof-tile workshops. As a result of an examination of both the design and the fabrication techniques of roof tiles from these provinces, it was shown that, with a few exceptions, the same traditions of design and fabrication were maintained from the start of production through until the repair phase in the 9th century. From this it is argued that the same groups of craftsmen continued to be engaged in roof-tile production at Kokubunji tile workshops that combined the production of ceramics.
From the 9th century, provincial combined tile and ceramic kilns were mainly organized around the requirements of ceramic production. With the reduced demand for roof tiles with the decline in Kokubunji construction, roof tile craft workers could only continue their work through depending on ceramics.
Keywords:
Nara-Heian periods, Japan, roof tiles, Kokubunji provincial temples, craft workshops, Ritsuryo system.
Some Aspects of the Temple Settlements in Medieval Omi
Kaname MaekawaIn recent years, within the field of urban history a reevaluation of the history of the city in Japan has begun. This reevaluation has proposed that the ancient capitals (palaces) and early modern castle towns should be seen as "traditional cities" in contrast to modern urban centers. Against this background, this paper uses results from actual archaeological excavations to analyze an urban form peculiar to Japan that cannot be classified as a capital or a castle town: the medieval "religious city". It is argued that the "religious cities" or "Koto type" medieval temple settlements of Omi district should be seen as a type of medieval city that, together with the Sengoku (Warring States) and Nobunaga-Hideyoshi type castle towns, fused and evolved into the early modern castle town of the Tokugawa period.
Using the perspective of "urban archaeology", the temple settlements of medieval Omi are analyzed using three of the ten characteristics of cities proposed by V.G. Childe: (1) a concentrated population, (2) the presence of craftsmen and other specialists who do not directly produce food, and (4) the presence of monuments or public facilities ? in this case straight roads. As a result, it was possible to identify a type of settlement with a group of defining features including planned, straight roads built down from the mountainside with artificial terraces on both sides. These settlements were called "Koto type" medieval temple settlements and were interpreted as "religious cities". Based primarily on the results of excavations at the Binmanji site in Shiga Prefecture, four developmental stages were identified using changes in mountain beliefs and temples and their surrounding settlements. The establishment of straight roads corresponds to the type II-a of the three directional model previously proposed by the author.
Of the four stages, stage III is argued to be that of the typical "Koto type" medieval temple settlement. In order to examine the historical significance of these settlements, this paper looks at their formation, development, and spread to other regions. As a result, it is proposed that the technology and philosophy behind these urban settlements may have been used in the temple compound towns of the Hokuriku, the medieval castles of Omi, and even at Ando castle. From the examples of Sasaki Rokkaku's Kannonji castle and Kyogoku's Joheiji castle, it can be suggested that these settlements were established at almost the same time as the warrior class began building mountainside sacred precincts known as "Sanjo Goten".
This paper proposes the "religious city" as one type of medieval town in Japanese urban history. The "Koto type" medieval temple settlement is of particular importance as one distinctive "religious city" because it can be hypothesized that these settlements had a strong influence on the urban plans of not just the castles of the Warring States era, but also the defensive layout of Ando castle and the urban plan of the Yoshizaki temple compound town, both of which were connected to the later castle towns of the early modern period.
Keywords:
Japan, Middle Ages, urbanization, Omi district, temple towns, settlement archaeology.
A Historical Study of Standing Pillar Rituals: The Origins of Standing Pillar Features and Sacred Tree Beliefs
Fumio UedaStanding pillar rituals in which a pillar is erected at a ritual location are known from ethnographic examples all over the world. In Japan, the Suwa Taisha Shrine Onbashira-sai festival is a well-known example of such a ritual. The origins of this pillar festival are often said to lie in the Jomon period, but this has not been proven and research on this topic is poorly developed. Furthermore, the use of landscape theory in Jomon research to explain these rituals in the same way as stone circles is problematic. This article analyzes the origin and development of standing pillar rituals in the Japanese archipelago by examining their distribution and locational features. As a result, it was concluded that there were three lineages of these rituals and that they have not simply continued unchanged through to the present.
Following this, a study was made of archaeological and historical materials relating to the distribution, locational environment and morphology of standing pillar rituals through human history. Regions considered were the Eurasian continent, ancient Egypt, and North and South America. Related examples of beliefs about sacred trees are also discussed and materials from ancient China are used to argue that sacred trees and standing pillars have the same meanings. Ethnographic examples are used to show that prior to the 19th century, this link between pillar rituals and sacred tree beliefs was universal. A combination of archaeological, historic and ethnographic information was used to suggest a three-stage developmental scheme and to demonstrate theoretically that the roots of pillar rituals can be found in sacred tree beliefs. Roots in ceremonies related to death and rebirth are also universal and it is concluded that the Jomon-type standing pillar rituals of the Japanese archipelago are typical examples of such ceremonies.
It can be suggested that sacred tree beliefs were born from the forest and tree worship of the beginning of the Neolithic and that standing pillar rituals combined human death and rebirth within the rotating structure of nature. Following that, these rituals were incorporated into social and religious systems as part of the historical development of each region and their objectives and form diversified.
Key words:
Eurasia, Japan, Neolithic-modern periods, wood circles, pillar features, sacred trees.
A Preliminary Report on Excavations at the Gongju Tanji-ri Side-Chamber Tomb Cluster
Ji Minju(Translated by Takamichi Notohashi and Shimpei Hashino)
A cluster of 23 side-chamber tombs was discovered at the Gongju Tanji-ri site on the Korean peninsula. Preservation was extremely good and the tomb structure was clear. The grave goods and human skeletal remains were fully preserved. This site is an extremely important find for understanding not just the structural characteristics and chronology of side-chamber tombs on the Korean peninsula, but also the problems, long discussed in Japanese archaeology, of the origin of the side-chamber tombs of the Japanese archipelago and ancient Korea-Japan relations as a whole.
A rough date for the side-chamber tomb construction can be obtained from the typological features of pottery and other objects used as grave goods. From the typology of bowls with fitted covers (futatsuki) and tripods, it can be concluded that side-chamber tombs were built during the early half of the Paekche Yushin phase (late 5th century).
The structural characteristics of the Gongju Tanji-ri side-chamber tombs are similar to the early side-chamber tombs of the Japanese archipelago which are distributed across northern Kyushu at sites such as Takenami, Yukuhashi City, Fukuoka Prefecture and Uenoharu, Oita Prefecture. These date from the late 5th to the early 6th centuries and have quite a few Peninsula-type grave goods. These are important materials for lifting the veil that has so far surrounded the origins of the side-chamber tombs of the archipelago. The excavation of the Gongju Tanji-ri site gives us the opportunity to consider further the possibility that side-chamber tombs originated in the Paekche region.
Keywords:
Three Kingdoms period, Paekche, Kongju region, side-chamber tombs.
Excavations at Dainichiyama Mound 35
Koji FujiiLocated on the left bank of the lower reaches of the Kinokawa River in northern Wakayama Prefecture, Dainichiyama Mound 35 is part of the nationally-designated Iwase Senzuka kofun cluster that extends over the Iwase mountains. From its size and location, this mound had traditionally been seen as one of the main kofun of the cluster. Although the mound is preserved in a designated locality, many details remain unclear from previous research, which includes the plans of the mound and stone chamber and the haniwa surface collection made by Kansai University.
With the aim of preserving and utilizing the kofun cluster, from Heisei 15 Wakayama Prefecture began preservation and repair work at the Iwase Senzuka kofun cluster national historical site, and excavations were conducted at Dainichiyama Mound 35 as part of this work. These excavations clarified various aspects of the mound, including the structure of the central burial and outer mound, the mound size, and its shape. It was also shown that there were projections on the east-west constriction. Excavations on the eastern projection found many haniwa and Sue ware placed in an area surrounded by a row of circular haniwa. Analysis of artifacts during fiscal Heisei 16 confirmed representational haniwa including houses, lids, swords, human figures, birds and horses. Sue vessel forms included kame pots, pedestalled takatsuki, and stands. The representational haniwa include a gliding bird, a bird with a long beak that is probably a crane, a horse haniwa mud guard with armor slats, and the hip roof of a house with pillars supporting the ridgepole beam. These types of haniwa are extremely rare, with few similar examples in western Japan. Moreover, this is the first example of a bird-shaped haniwa depicting flight.
The excavations demonstrated that the mound has three levels, but it is not certain if these are three step-like construction levels or whether the bottom level should be seen as a foundation platform associated with the mound. There are many points which await further excavation, but the author tends to support the second interpretation based on the currently available evidence. A comparison of tombs of the same age in the Iwase Senzuka cluster with the recently-excavated Imashirozuka kofun is used to support this interpretation and related problems are also discussed.
Dainichiyama Mound 35 may be the largest keyhole-shaped tomb in the Iwase Senzuka kofun cluster, which dates from the first half of the 6th century. The haniwa cluster on the projections is of a quality and quantity that is noteworthy even in western Japan. Further excavations and analysis may well change the picture of Dainichiyama Mound 35 presented in this paper, contributing further to research on Kofun tomb rituals and the local history of the Wakayama region.
Keywords:
Kofun period, Wakayama Prefevture, keyhole-shaped tombs, haniwa rituals.
Book review
Isao Usuki, Tekki Jidai no Tohoku Ajia [North East Asia in the Iron Age].
Reviewed by Katsuhiko KiyamaThe regions covered in this book include Northeast China (Heilongjiang and Jilin Provinces), the Russian Far East, northeast Korea, the Sea of Okhotsk, and the steppe areas of Mongolia. As can be surmised from the title, the Iron Age is the main focus, but the book also considers other periods from the Neolithic to the era of state formation through to about the 12th century AD. For this reason, the book provides an overview of the archaeology of the above-mentioned regions.
Of the countries covered in this volume, China, Russia, Japan and Korea are currently characterized by an environment of active international cooperation. Due to international circumstances, however, there was a long period when it was difficult to obtain publications from many of these countries, never mind actually conduct fieldwork. The author, Isao Usuki, is one archaeologist who began collecting many publications from those difficult times and has continued to energetically analyze materials and conduct fieldwork. This volume is a revised and extended version of Usuki's PhD thesis and contains many chapters that have previously been published as research articles. As a result, the book can be said to show the achievements of the author's sound research.
Many of the archaeological cultures discussed in this volume straddle more than one country. There is a strong tendency for these cultures to be defined individually based on the associated ethnic group and concepts of the state, an approach which often fails to reflect the real archaeological picture of regional and chronological variation. Moreover, traditional archaeological methods that were distinctive to each country have had not insignificant negative effects on the development of research and a shared pan-regional approach to the archaeological materials of this area is required.
Within this context of research, Usuki attempts to classify the phylogeny of each culture, primarily using ceramics. The resulting interpretations of the regionality and phylogeny of the archaeological materials from Northeast Asia is one of the main contributions of this book. Furthermore, the author's classifications will be useful in evaluation of the traditional research in this region which has often attempted simplistic links between archaeological cultures and ethno-linguistic groups mentioned in historical texts.
In its consideration of geographical regions neighboring Japan, this book is important in placing the history of the Japanese archipelago in the context of the Far East and Northeast Asia. However, these latter regions encompass many countries and, compared to the level of interest in the area, it cannot be said that research is sufficiently advanced. Against this background, the present volume is an important work that accurately grasps the current status of archaeology in Northeast Asia. An English summary of each chapter can be found at the end of the book. I recommend this summary to readers who cannot read Japanese but who wish to deepen their knowledge of the archaeology of Northeast Asia.
JAA