TRENDS IN ARCHAEOLOGY IN JAPAN

Medieval
YAMAGUCHI Hiroyuki1
It is understood that the Japanese medieval period started around the 11th century AD andended around the 16th century AD. The period is an object for archaeological study, andﬁscal 2018 saw many excavation research projects, study conventions, and publication oftheses and excavation reports. The outstanding excavation research included “Sendakitasite (Kamakura period)” in Kanazawa City where three wooden stupas with hats (kasatōba)were excavated, and Sunpujō castle remains in Shizuoka City where the largest tenshudai(founding stone for castle tower) in Japan was excavated. There were conferences forceramics, castles, and stonework. Also, large conferences were held for castle architecture
and city studies. For stonework study, both archaeology and document history pursued
domestic stonework, stone material from Zhejiang Province, China and stonework inKyushu, and exchanges of stone culture/manufacturing technology in Japan, China, andSouth Korea. From the viewpoint of exchanges, Research Center for Asian Archaeologyof Industry and Culture, Ehime University, held an international symposium on ironmanufacturing, and Yamagata Prefectural Center for Archaeological Research published anexcavation report Hattan Iseki Dai 1–3ji Hakkutsu Chōsa Hōkokusho (Excavation Reportfor the 1st to 3rd Excavation of Hattan Site). It was the ﬁrst example in the world to analyze
the excavated circular box (magemono) which contained 7,986 coins by a non-destructivemethod (X-ray CT) to learn the number of coins, kind and condition of casting for eachcoin, as well as the front image of each coin, without disturbing the content. It was epochaland its propagation is desirable. For publication of books/theses/magazines, importantworks were: SHIBATA Keiko “Ōtomo-shi Yakataato Shutsudo Chūgoku Tōji no Kenkyu(Study on Chinese Ceramics Excavated from Ōtomo Clan Residence),” IKEDA Yoshifumi
Kaitei ni Nemuru Mōko Shūrai: Suichū Kōkogaku no Chōsen (Mongolian Invasion on theSeabed: Challenges of Under-water Archaeology), TOKUDOME Daisuke “Thoughts onExcavated and Hereditary Collection Pieces of Yingqing Meiping Vases of the SouthernChinese Origin,” TANAKA Katsuko “Hakata’ ni Motarasareta Chūgoku Tōjiki (ChineseCeramics Brought to ‘Hakata’),” MORI Tatsuya “Tairiku to Rettō wo Tsunagu Tōjiki
Ryūtsū Rūto no Yōsō (Aspects of Ceramic Distribution Routes Connecting the Continentand Japanese Archipelago),” ISHIGURO Hisako “Ink-written Name of Song in Kyōzutsu
1 Tohoku Gakuin University, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980–8511, Japan(FZH06162@nifty.ne.jp)

JAPANESE JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY 8 (2021): 339–340© Japanese Archaeological Association339

JAPANESE JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGY 8 (2021): 339–340

ARCHAEOLOGIA JAPONICAand ‘Gangshou’: with Inscriptions of Wubai Luohan Stautes from Nanhua Temple ofShaoguan, Guangdong,” and ŌBA Koji Hakata no Kōkogaku: Chūsei no Bōeki Toshi woHoru (Archaeology of Hakata: Excavation of Medieval Trading City). While studying
abroad (on the same time period with medieval Japan), the author again realized theimportance of locating and deepening study results of Japanese archaeology. While there
were many theses and conferences related to under-water archaeology, unfortunately Japanis much behind in this ﬁeld.

© Japanese Archaeological Association340