Ōmuro Kofun group
{{Short description|Group of burial mounds}}
{{Infobox ancient site
| name = Ōmuro Kofun Group
| native_name =大室古墳群
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| image = 大室古墳群244号墳.JPG
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| caption = Kofun No.244 is the largest in the Ōmuro Kofun Group
| map_type = Japan Nagano Prefecture#Japan
| map_alt = Location in Japan
| relief = 1
| map_caption = Ōmuro Kofun Group
| map_size = 270px
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| coordinates = {{coord|36|35|23|N|138|13|51|E|display=inline, title}}
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| location = Nagano, Nagano, Japan
| region = Chubu region
| type = kofun
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| epochs = Kofun period
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| public_access = Yes (archaeological park)
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{{nihongo|Ōmuro Kofun Group|大室古墳群|Ōmuro kofun-gun}} is a group of late Kofun period burial mounds located in the Matsushiro neighborhood of the city of Nagano in the Chubu region of Japan. The site was collectively designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1997.{{cite web |url= http://bunka.nii.ac.jp/heritages/detail/162751 |title=大室古墳群 |language=Japanese |publisher=Agency for Cultural Affairs |accessdate=}}
Overview
The Ōmuro Kofun Group is a large necropolis consisting of over 500 tumuli spread across two valleys on the south side of the Chikuma River at an elevation of 350 to 500 meters approximately six kilometers southeast of Nagano city. The tombs were built over a 250-year period from the 5th to the 8th centuries. They have been grouped by archaeologists into five groups ( Kanaiyama, Kitatani, Kajo, Omurodani, and Kitayama) by their geographic location, stretching across an area of roughly 2.5 square kilometers. {{cite book |last1=Isomura |first1=Yukio |last2=Sakai |first2=Hideya |title=(国指定史跡事典) National Historic Site Encyclopedia |date=2012 |publisher=学生社 |isbn=4311750404}}{{in lang|ja}}
There is only one keyhole-shaped kofun ({{nihongo|zenpō-kōen-fun|前方後円墳}}), but at least 330 smaller {{Ill|Round Kofun|lt=circular-shaped kofun|ja|円墳}} ({{nihongo|empun|円墳}}) made of stacked river stones from the Chikuma River. Most of these {{Ill|Round Kofun|lt=circular-shaped kofun|ja|円墳}} have a diameter of approximately ten meters, and there is no other burial mound cluster in Japan where there are so many such {{Ill|Round Kofun|lt=circular-shaped kofun|ja|円墳}} in such a small area. These mounds can be divided into 40 different variations, some with a scallop-shaped stone burial chamber, or with a triangular gabled burial chamber ceiling. Theories that these tombs were built by immigrants to Japan from the ancient Korean states of Goguryeo or Baekje remain controversial. Excavated grave goods include Sue ware and Haji ware pottery, bronze mirrors, armor, swords, horse fittings and jewelry. The number of horse bones found was unusually large, and included the skull of a horse which was buried in the vestibule of one of the horizontal burial chambers.
The site is now an archaeological park with a museum, the {{nihongo| Ōmuro Kofun Museum|大室古墳館|Ōmuro kofun-kan}} displaying some of the artifacts discovered.
Access
- By car, 15 minutes from the Nagano IC on the Jōshin-etsu Expressway
- By bus, 20 minutes on foot from {{nihongo|Ōmuro Station|大室駅|Ōmuro eki}} (there are sign posts from the bus stop). From JR East Nagano Station, take the Nagaden Bus, No. 8, the Suzaka-Yashima Line, departing from the south exit of Nagano Station.
Gallery
大室古墳群244号墳石室内部.JPG|Burial chamber of Tomb 244
大室古墳群168号墳合掌形石室.JPG|Tomb 168
大室古墳群238号墳.JPG|Tomb 238
大室古墳群240号墳.JPG|Tomb 240
大室古墳群240号墳石室内部.JPG|Burial chamber of Tomb 240
大室古墳群176号墳.JPG|Tomb 276
大室古墳館.JPG|Ōmuro Kofun Museum
See also
References
{{reflist}}
External links
{{commons category|Omuro Kofun Group (Nagano) }}
- [http://bunkazai-nagano.jp/modules/dbsearch/page1158.html Nagano city cultural heritage database] {{in lang|ja}}
- [http://www.matsushiro-year.jp/modules/sightseeing/index.php?action=FacilityView&facility_id=34 Matsushiro tourist information site] {{in lang|ja}}
- [https://www.city.nagano.nagano.jp/soshiki/bunka/5763.html Nagano city home page] {{in lang|ja}}
Category:History of Nagano Prefecture