Rare Type of Kofun in Okayama Japan – Futago No. 14 Kofun – 二子14号墳
#kofun #kofunperiod #japan #japantravel #megalith
********* Stick around to the end of the video for the view !!! *********
Located in Kurashiki in Okayama Prefecture (岡山県倉敷市), this kofun is one of the more interesting ones that I’ve seen in terms of its shape. The kofun is thought to be constructed in the mid 7th Century, late in the kofun era where the keyhole shaped tombs were being replaced by round and square shaped tombs.
It’s sort of a mini, less layered version of this one, also in Okayama : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulp3AIR-tr0&t=87s
Truth be known, the kofun is not in its original location. It was relocated from somewhere nearby (I’m not sure exactly where) due to the construction of the highway which runs just below the hill it sits on now. This website show how it looked before relocation (first pic), and also how it looked immediately after being relocated (last pic) : https://www.pref.okayama.jp/site/kodai/632640.html
As you can see from comparing the last pic in the link above to what we see in the video, nature is really starting to close in on the kofun, and I fear that it will eventually be swallowed up by the trees, shrubs and weeds. Prior to filming I actually spent about 30 minutes cutting away at the weedy overgrowth with my pocket multi tool knife thing to open up access to the inner chamber! Unfortunately I’ve seen this type of lack of maintenance for sites like this in Japan quite a bit, I wish the government/owners of these sites would do a lot more to help maintain them, I believe it would help immensely with their popularity.
More info :
English – https://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=37154
Japanese – https://www.pref.okayama.jp/site/kodai/632640.html
Location : https://maps.app.goo.gl/W2pu9qRCCPrqrDMs6
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Q: What am I watching here ?
A: You are watching footage of a “kofun/古墳” – kofun are tombs in Japan that were created during the Kofun Period (roughly between the 3rd and 7th Century AD) – this era was preceded by the Jomon and Yayoi periods, and followed by Asuka, Nara and so on. These tombs were built as burial chambers for people from Japanese imperial families and other people of higher status in society during those days. The most well-known and generally largest tombs are found around Kyoto and Osaka, but they are found all over Kansai, Kanto, Tohoku etc., and even in other parts of Japan such as Shikoku and Kyushu. Figures vary greatly, but some sources state there are over 160000 of these kofun in Japan. At times you will see haniwa on and around kofun – haniwa are terracotta figures which were made in various shapes, including being formed as people and animals.
Have a read of the the Wikipedia article for more information : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kofun
Ideally I’d like to build a kofun appreciation community of sorts, but that is just a dream right now. You can hit me up on:
https://www.facebook.com/japankofun/
https://www.instagram.com/japankofun/