The are a group of ''

kofun are megalithic tombs or tumuli in Northeast Asia. ''Kofun'' were mainly constructed in the Japanese archipelago between the middle of the 3rd century to the early 7th century CE.岡田裕之「前方後円墳」『日本古代史大辞典』� ...

'' ()—megalithic tombs—in

Sakai is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its keyhole-shaped burial mounds, or kofun, which date from the fifth century and inclu ...

Osaka Prefecture is a prefecture of Japan located in the Kansai region of Honshu. Osaka Prefecture has a population of 8,778,035 () and has a geographic area of . Osaka Prefecture borders Hyōgo Prefecture to the northwest, Kyoto Prefecture to the north, Nara ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Originally consisting of more than 100 tombs, only less than 50% of the key-hole, round, and rectangular tombs remain. The , the largest ''kofun'' in

, is believed to have been constructed over a period of 20 years in the mid 5th century during the

Kofun Period The is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD (the date of the introduction of Buddhism), following the Yayoi period. The Kofun and the subsequent Asuka periods are sometimes collectively called the Yamato period. This period ...

. While it cannot be accurately confirmed, it is commonly accepted that the tomb was built for the late

Emperor Nintoku , also known as was the 16th Emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Due to his reputation for goodness derived from depictions in the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, he is sometimes referred to as the . While his existenc ...

. The

Imperial Household Agency The (IHA) is an agency of the government of Japan in charge of state matters concerning the Imperial Family, and also the keeping of the Privy Seal and State Seal of Japan. From around the 8th century AD, up until the Second World War, it wa ...

of Japan treats it as such.

Location

The Mozu Kofun Cluster is located in the city of

which is within

. The tumuli are built on a plateau overlooking

Osaka Bay Osaka Bay (大阪湾 ''Ōsaka-wan'' ) is a bay in western Japan. As an eastern part of the Seto Inland Sea, it is separated from the Pacific Ocean by the Kii Channel and from the neighbor western part of the Inland Sea by the Akashi Strait. ...

near the ancient coastline and are distributed in a range of about four kilometers from east-to-west and north-to-south.The Furuichi Kofun Cluster is located in nearby

Habikino 270px, Habikino city office is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 109,479 in 50918 households and a population density of 4100 persons per km². The total area of the city is . The city is known ...

and Fujiidera cities.

History

In the

Japanese archipelago The Japanese archipelago (Japanese: 日本列島, ''Nihon rettō'') is a group of 6,852 islands that form the country of Japan, as well as the Russian island of Sakhalin. It extends over from the Sea of Okhotsk in the northeast to the East China ...

, more than 20,000 tumuli (''kofun''), which are mounds of earth and stones erected over graves of the ruling class, were built between the later part of the 3rd century and the 6th century. It was the peak period of building such mounds. They represent a cultural tradition which is an expression of "forms, and design of the kofun" of the sociopolitical

hierarchical A hierarchy (from Greek: , from , 'president of sacred rites') is an arrangement of items (objects, names, values, categories, etc.) that are represented as being "above", "below", or "at the same level as" one another. Hierarchy is an important ...

order and the link that was prevalent during that period between regions. This period is termed as the

. The most prominent imperial mausolea in this cluster of tumulus are those of

and

Emperor Richū , also known as was the 17th legendary Emperor of Japan,Imperial Household Agency (''Kunaichō'') 履中天皇 (17) retrieved 2013-8-28. according to the traditional order of succession. No firm dates can be assigned to this Emperor's life or ...

. There are 44 burial mounds in the Mozu cluster, including those that are partially destroyed. Of these, 19 have been designated as national historic sites, and separately, the

has ruled three to be Imperial mausoleums, two to be "Tomb Reference Sites", and 18 to be "baichō", or ancillary mausoleums connected with an Imperial mausoleum. There used to be more than 100 burial mounds, but due to the rapid development of residential land after World War II, more than half of the burial mounds were destroyed.古墳データベース
-

/ref> In 2010, the Japanese government proposed that the Daisen Kofun and the entire cluster of Mozu Tombs and Furuichi Tombs be designated as a

UNESCO World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

. 9 years later on 6 July 2019, the site was approved and inscribed as a UNESCO

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

under Criteria: (iii) and (iv) as the Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Group: Mounded Tombs of Ancient Japan.

Features

The ''kofun'' are found in many shapes and dimensions in varying patterns. Some are of simple circular or square shape (''empun'' and ''hōfun''). The larger ones are keyhole-shaped (''zempō kōenfun''); they represent the highest class of ''kofun'' and were built in great detail. The three prominent aspects of these ''kofun'' are their massive size and being surrounded by several moats and many secondary ''kofun''. In the

Osaka Plain The refers to a 1,600 km² area of flat land, the largest plain in the Kinki region, including a large part of Osaka Prefecture and a southeastern portion of Hyōgo Prefecture. It is bordered on the north by the Hokusetsu Mount Range, on t ...

and

Nara Basin The Nara Basin (奈良盆地 ''Nara-bonchi''), also known as the Yamato Basin (大和盆地 ''Yamato-bonchi''), is a valley in the north-western part of Nara Prefecture, Japan. It has an area of roughly . It is surrounded on four sides by mountai ...

, which were the cultural centre of the Kofun Period, the rounded keyhole-shaped tombs were built extending to very large lengths, out of which the Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Clusters are the most prominent. These are in two ''kofun'' groups which are dated to the later part of 4th and early part of 6th centuries. These ''kofun'' are of the largest dimensions in the country. The Nintoku-tennō-ryō Kofun, is one grave mound which is a long tumulus enclosed by a moat and a

fortification A fortification is a military construction or building designed for the defense of territories in warfare, and is also used to establish rule in a region during peacetime. The term is derived from Latin ''fortis'' ("strong") and ''facere'' ...

which is in length; this is said to be the largest such mound in the world. This cluster also has the Richū-tennō-ryō Kofun, made of a tumulus of length and said to be the third largest in the country. Another group of mounds, located about away from the Mozu cluster is known as the Furuichi cluster. It has the Ōjin-tennō-ryō Kofun of length which is said to be the second largest in the country. This group also has 11 more huge massive rounded "keyhole-shaped kofun" with mound length of or more. A feature of these funerary mounds is that they contain – along with the buried people –

grave goods Grave goods, in archaeology and anthropology, are the items buried along with the body. They are usually personal possessions, supplies to smooth the deceased's journey into the afterlife or offerings to the gods. Grave goods may be classed as a ...

made of iron, weapons worn by individuals including arrowheads, swords, hoe and spade tips, and many other similar items. Also found in the mounds are antiquities made of gilded bronze such as horse tacks and sash buckles. The Daisen Kofun mound is approximately long and across at its widest point, while the entire tomb area is 840m long. Enclosed by three moats, the mound rises approximately 35m above the surrounding terrain. The highest point is 47m, making it visible to the seafarers in nearby Osaka Bay. The inner moat is the widest of the moats at approximately . The mound is approximately in area, and the entire tomb is . Today, the tomb is off-limits and protected by the Imperial Household Agency in the centre of Sakai City. The moats have been maintained and provide a sanctuary for fish and waterbirds. The mound itself is completely overgrown by vegetation. A viewing platform from the second (middle) moat is accessible at the south side of the site. The viewing platform is 500m away from Mozu Station on the

Hanwa Line The is a commuter rail line in the Osaka-Kobe-Kyoto Metropolitan Area, owned and operated by West Japan Railway Company (JR West). The 61.3 km (38.1 mi) line runs between Osaka and Wakayama, Japan and has a 1.7 km branchline in a southern O ...

and is directly across the street from the Sakai City Museum. This museum provides visitors with information about the ''kofun'' and its history.

Gallery

File:NintokuTomb Aerial photograph 2007.jpg, alt=, Daisenryo Kofun, 2.8 km in circumference and the largest kofun in

, is thought to be the Tomb of

. File:Kamiishizu Misanzai Kofun Aerial photograph 2007.jpg, alt=, Kamiishizu Misanzai Kofun File:Haze Nisanzai Kofun zenkei.JPG, Haze Nisanzai Kofun File:Mozu Gobyo-yama Kofun zenkei.JPG, Mozu Gobyo-yama Kofun File:Tadeiyama Kofun Aerial photograph 2007.jpg, alt=, Tadeiyama Kofun File:Itasuke Kofun zenkei.JPG, Itasuke Kofun

References

Bibliography

External links

*
Entry on UNESCO World Heritage tentative list
*

*
Decorated Kofun Database
{{Authority control Kofun Buildings and structures in Osaka Prefecture Tourist attractions in Osaka Prefecture History of Osaka Prefecture World Heritage Sites in Japan Historic Sites of Japan Sakai, Osaka