Tamaoka Kofun Cluster, Ancient burial mounds in Kaisai, Japan.
Tamaoka Kofun Cluster consists of seven burial mounds positioned on a terrace along the east bank of the Kakogawa River in Hyogo Prefecture. The largest grave features a keyhole shape spanning about 109 meters, while excavations revealed weapons, tools, and ceramic figures.
These burial mounds were built during the middle Kofun period, when powerful rulers were interred with impressive monuments. The complex ranks among the five largest of its kind in the prefecture, showing the importance of this region in early Japanese history.
The cylindrical clay figures found here show how people of the Kofun period honored their dead and what objects they thought mattered for the afterlife. These artifacts and burial goods tell us about the beliefs and daily life of that distant time.
The site is reachable on foot in about 20 minutes from Hōjōmachi Station on the Hōjō Railway Line. It is best to visit early in the day on warm days, as there is little shade on the terrace.
The Harima Kokudoki, an ancient historical document, tells a story about Princess Nichijō-hime connected to this place. This written record links the physical remains with a compelling legend from the distant past.
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