Kitayama Kofun

The Kitayama Kofun (北山古墳) is a Kofun period burial mound located in the Nohana Kitayama neighborhood of the town of Yurihama, Tōhaku District, Tottori Prefecture in the San'in region of Japan. The tumulus was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1980. It is the largest burial mound in Tottori Prefecture and is estimated to have been built in the first half of the 5th century (middle of the Kofun period).

Kitayama Kofun

北山古墳
Kitayama Kofun
Kitayama Kofun Kitayama Kofun (Japan)
Location	Yurihama, Tottori, Tottori Prefecture Japan
Region	San'in region
Coordinates	35°27′50.72″N 133°53′6.56″E
Type	kofun
History
Founded	early 5th century AD
Periods	Kofun period
Site notes
Public access	Yes (no facilities)
National Historic Site of Japan

Overview

The area around Lake Tōgō, located in the central part of Tottori Prefecture, is an area where many of the largest burial mounds in the San'in region are located and was a center of Kofun period culture. Located near the tip of the Kitayama hills that extend along the southern shore of Lake Tōgō, The Kitayama Kofun is the largest keyhole-shaped tumulus in the San'in region, with a total length of 110 meters, and is orientated to the west-southwest. It is a zenpō-kōen-fun (前方後円墳), which is shaped like a keyhole, having one square end and one circular end, when viewed from above. During an archaeological excavation in 1966, a pit-style stone burial chamber was confirmed in the posterior circular portion; this chamber had a 6.2-meter-long, 4.4-meter-wide gravel bed and a drainage ditch, but had been robbed in antiquity and no artifacts were discovered. There was a second burial in a stone sarcophagus two meters to the south of the burial chamber. This sarcophagus measures 1.7 meters in length, 0.5 meters in width, and 0.5 meters in depth and was intact. In addition to human bones, many grave goods such as bronze mirror, iron swords, and magatama were excavated. A third possible burial location was found three meters north of the burial chamber and a number of artifacts were recovered from this spot. On the exterior of the tumulus, many fragments of various haniwa (cylindrical, figurative, "morning-glory" shaped, etc.) from the early middle Kofun period were excavated from the mound, along with fukiishi and it is estimated that the tumulus was built around the beginning of the middle Kofun period.

The site is located about five minutes by car from Matsuzaki Station on the JR West San'in Main Line.

Overall length

110 meters

Posterior circular portion

70 meter diameter x 12 meters high

Anterior rectangular portion

62 meters long x 5.5 to 9.5meters high

"neck" portion

43 meters wide

See also

• List of Historic Sites of Japan (Tottori)

External links

Media related to Kitayama Kofun (Yurihama) at Wikimedia Commons

• Cultural properties of Tottori (in Japanese)
• Yurihama Tourist Bureau home page (in Japanese)