【Japanese Tour Guide’s History of Japan-4】The Jomon Period-1
hi everyone welcome to the online lecture history of Japan i’m at Omar Shia Mount in Tokyo this is the birthplace of Japanese archaeology at Omar station near here there is a monument on the platform that says so why it’s all started with an American zeologist Dr edward Sylvester Morse on June 18 1877 Dr mos arrived in Tokohama he came to Japan for researching about a species of Japanese breakpod Lingula 2 days after his arrival he discovered a layer of shells from the window of a train heading from Yokohama to Tokyo from September to December of the same year the first scientific excavation in Japan was conducted this was a shell mound in other words it was a rubbish dump area under this white roof you can see the sample layers of shells but in fact in addition to shellfish a large number of dwelling sites potteries stone tools ornaments and fish and animal bones were excavated these are the pictures of excavated earring and fish hook actually this was not just a dumping area but a place to offer prayers of thanksgiving for the food and tools used nowadays this place is called Omar Shellman’s park great discovery of Dr moors became trigger of archaeology among Japanese according to the survey people probably began to live here about 4,400 years ago it was part of the German period it’s after the paleithic or the period described in the past video in the next few videos including this one I’ll talk about the German period what do you think is the reason for the boundary between the paleolithic and German periods the answer is the presence or absence of Athen potry there was no pottery in the paloric the world’s oldest pieces of pottery believed to have been made about 16,500 years ago from today was discovered at Odai among the ruins in Almori prefecture in 1998 simply speaking the German period began when people made parties and ended when potty field rice farming started in Japan about 3,000 years ago the period was a time when hunting gathering and settlement were the main lifestyle it lasted for about 13,000 years and more very long time the German period accounts for most of Japan’s history by the way what is German german was named after German potry found in the layer of the German period what is German pottery it’s called marked pottery these are example of the patterns when twisted plant fiber patterns are pressed into the moist clay before firing the pottery becomes very characteristic the fibers were rolled with the palm or stick to create patterns on the surface of the potteries cordmark the word Dr most used to describe this pottery was translated in Japanese jo this small park is very important because it opened the door to the archaeology of Japan and provided an opportunity to unravel the life of the prehistoric Japanese people currently the total number of German period shell mounts found in Japan is about 2700 so far this is the distribution map yellow and red indicate the location of shell mounts red in particular is where a large number of shellmans were found concentrated about 950 of them are concentrated along the coast of Tokyo Bay omar Chairman is here today modern buildings stand close to this ancient ruins here in Omari the fact that a large gap of time exists in the same place is an interesting aspect of the metropolis Tokyo here is the question why did the German period last for about 13,000 years the answer is simple it was very peaceful times well what was the German period like i want to talk about six key points of this period one environment two food three tools four fashion and living space five trade and logistics six belief the German period was very long period that’s why these points may vary from period to period and region to region let me talk briefly about it first environment this is a rough topographic map about 30,000 years ago it was the ice age because of the low sea level at this time Japan was close to Eurasian continent and some places were partially connected to it this is an emerged view about 12,000 years ago the ice age ended and temperatures warmed up on average temperature in the period was 2 to 3 Celsius higher than today and sea level rose up to about 1 to many m and the Japanese archipelago became as of today notably about 6,000 years ago the sea level of the earth reached its apex about 4 meters higher than it is today at this time much of the flat land of current Japan was covered by seawater this is an image of present kanto area at the time today’s major cities such as Tokyo Kawasaki Yokohama and Chiba were under seawater sea water entered as far as Toiki Prefecture about 70 kilometers from Tokyo around here there are shamans too shamount is here because of its proximity to the sea it’s easy to imagine that the people there ate a lot of fish and shellfish there are more than 95,000 ruins of the German period throughout Japan out of those so many ruins of the period are found in northern and eastern parts of Japan especially in Hokkaido Tohoku and Kto regions hokkaido and the Tohoku regions are very cold places in winter time today how come so many ruins in these regions because these places were very warm during the German period it was very comfortable to live and there was another reason what do you think it is the answer is volcano there was a major natural disaster that affected the population distribution in the past video I mentioned that when the Iraa in Kushu region erupted about 30,000 years ago volcanic ash fell as far as today’s Tokyo volcanic eruption occurred in the same area again about 7,300 years ago the Kikai Koda erupted in the major way according to Kobe University research group this eruption was found to be the largest in the world in the past 10,000 years on the right is an enlarged view today only Yojima and Takashima which were part of the Cardera are visible above sea level the crater is like oval shape it’s about 20 km east to west and 17 km north to south at the time of the eruption the volcanic plume rose to about 40,000 m and pylastic flows of about 300 km per hour spread rapidly causing a major disaster in western Japan of course there was a tsunami according to simulations it is estimated that there was giant tsunami in present southern Kagoshima Prefecture it was about 30 m high 4.3 m in Oita 7.3 m in Tokima and 4 m in Wakayama volcanic ash fell as far as the southern part of today’s Tohoku region the numbers indicate the approximate boundaries of the volcanic ash deposits it is estimated that about 10 cm of volcanic ash was deposited in Tokyo it’s said that many people who lived in southern Kyushu and Shikoku areas died and people who survived from the disaster moved to eastern part of Japan based on genome analysis some researchers have suggested that some German people may have migrated to today’s southern republic of Korea after the eruption it is thought that the population was concentrated in northern and eastern side of Japan during this period partly due to the great eruption of the Kikai caldera do you think people lived in eastern part felt safely of course not always current beautiful sites like Lake Touada Mount Iwat Mount Huji erupted frequently during the German period the archaeological sites along the coast of Tohoku regions revealed that earthquake occurred frequently there were also large tsunamis the German people built their settlements on higher ground to avoid big waves in the late stage of the German period population in these regions began to decline as cold weather began to set in it’s also believed that people living in northern and eastern Japan moved to west in search of warmer climate in general the German period was warm and comfortable most of the time this is a tree zone distribution map about 3,000 years ago as a result this is your sprout leaf and evergreen trees increased on the Japanese archipelago that had been dominated by conifers it’s said that Japan’s rich nature and four seasons were nurtured during this period in rich environment food was abundant let’s talk about it take a look at this figure it shows that the German people ate seasonal foods according to the changing seasons blue indicates fishing in the sea and the rivers brown is gathering and green is hunting foods from the sea and the mountains was easily accessible without having trouble in spring they collected wild vegetables and seaweed this may not familiar to you i show you example these wild vegetables are called wabi and senmai they have harsh or bitter taste so we boiled them and season them with soy sauce or other seasonings today seaweed includes ku and wakame we also eat these too combo is like kelp dried one is very important ingredient to make soup of miso soba and udong wakame is putting miso soup soba udong were used for salad ka and wakame are also used in many other dishes from spring to summer they caught fish from sea and rivers after fishing the fish were normally dried as preserved food they collected shellfish too around summer they caught bonito here in Japan we call it kato and eat it as sashimi and grill like ku this is also a very important ingredient for making broth today to make broth we use katobushi it’s made from bonito through the processes of boiling smoking drying and fermentation it becomes so hard as wood that’s why to make broth from katobushi it’s necessary to shave it into flakes also we commonly sprinkle flakes on anything like salad or tofu it’s an allpurpose seasoning talking about seafood it’s fun to visit Tsukiji out market in Tokyo there are so many street stores you can see and eat various kinds of seafood some stores sell ku wakame and katushi in Ottoman they caught salmon and trout and they picked chestnuts walnuts and others in the woods excavations at the German sites indicate that the German people planted and cultivated chestnut trees also carbonized cookies made from chestnuts walnuts and acorns were found in some ruins oops this is just an image i don’t think there was chocolate in those days they cultivated beans and potatoes too it’s believed that they drank fruit wine made from fermented merberries and raspberries this is supported by the fact that these seeds were excavated in clusters and in large quantities together with PP of Drosophila that congregated in fermented matter from autumn to winter it was hunting season at this time large animals such as elephants like nomen and mammoth introduced in past video disappeared and medium-sized animals like deer white boards and bears increased most of the time when they hunted they took their dogs with them previous studies have shown that the German people already knew how to smoke meat for preservation they also used salt for seasoning or preservation they hunted all sorts of other animals in some places they hunted sea lions seals dolphins whales and sharks birds such as pigeons and ducks blowfish bones also have been found in shellmans all over Japan indicating that people back in time loved it most species are poisonous in general they have poison in internal organs and ovaries that’s why to be a bluffish chef they must have a special license today in fact it’s said to have already been eaten since the paleic period before the German period very brave when you see this figure we can see that the table of the German people was almost the same as Japanese today yellow circle in the center indicates making tools and building houses they spent their free time on those activities let’s briefly review the time flow of the German period before the German period it was a palarisic period and still in the ice age the world oldest pieces of pottery were discovered at old ruins about 16,500 years ago this is the beginning of the German period about 12,000 years ago ice began to melt and sea level rose the Japanese archipelago became closer to its present topography about 7,300 years ago Kai Kardura erupted in major way western Japan suffered a major disaster and it’s said that many people in western part of Japan moved to eastern and northern regions about 6,000 years ago the sea level reached its highest point most of the present flat areas were covered by sea water okaido Tohoku and the KTO regions were warm and comfortable places to live about 3,000 years ago it was a time when patty rice cultivation gradually started in Japan and the German period was coming to the end and cold weather set in the tree zone distribution became close to today it nurtured rich nature and four seasons german people lived with the cycle of four seasons and ate seasonal foods from the sea and mountains let’s move on to the next Japan travel tips tukiji out market it’s about 40,000 square meters there are about 460 stores including fresh fish dried seafood meat fruits vegetables cooking utensils and equipment and there are many standup meal stalls selling sushi grilled seafood sweets like basically closed on Wednesdays and Sundays check the calendar from the website below blue rectangle next to this area was our large wholesale market due to aging facilities it was relocated to new wholesale market toyos in 2018 the famous tuna auction takes place at the fish wholesale market it starts at 5:30 a.m and ends at 6:30 a.m check the calendar from the website below if you want to see the auction closer to you at the special booth on the first floor you need to apply for the permission the application form site is below you can see the auction freely through the glass on the second floor too if you want to visit there switch along that’s all thank you for watching see you next time
【Table of contents】
00:00 Introduction
00:31 The first excavation ever in Japan
01:54 The definition of the Jomon Period
03:28 What is Jomon?
04:13 Importance of Omori Shell Mounds Park
05:17 Six key points of the Jomon Period
06:14 Environment – Ice Age
06:34 Environment – About 12,000 years ago
06:54 Environment – About 6,000 years ago
08:22 Environment – About 7,300 years ago (Major eruption)
11:27 Environment – About 3,000 years ago
12:12 Food (Intro)
12:41 Food in spring
13:26 Food in summer
14:22 Tip of Tsukiji Outer Market
14:40 Food in autumn
15:34 Food in winter
16:09 Animals Jomon people hunt
16:23 Jomon people ate blowfish
16:52 Table of Jomon people
17:09 Review the lecture
18:37 Japan Travel Tips – Tsukiji Outer Market & Toyosu Market
19:52 Special Thanks, Thanks and Closing
【Source of reference】*All in Japanese
●Books●
○History of Japan
古代史の真実を研究する会. 『世界が驚愕する！ 封印された日本の古代史』. 宝島社. 2024年
斎藤成也.『核DNA解析でたどる 日本人の源流』. 河出書房新社. 2017年
齋藤武夫.『授業作りJAPANの日本が好きになる！ 歴史全授業』. 授業作りJAPANさいたま. 2020年
関裕二. 『「縄文」の新常識を知れば日本の謎が解ける』. PHP文庫. 2021年
竹内睦泰. 『超速！ 日本史の流れ』. ブックマン社. 2013年
竹田恒泰. 『国史 教科書 中学校社会科用』. 令和書籍. 2024年
田中英道. 『日本国史(上)』. 育鵬社. 2022年
「ニッポン再発見」俱楽部. 『ここまでわかった！ 縄文と弥生 77の謎』. 三笠書房. 2024年
林英臣. 『縄文のコトダマ』. 博進社. 2016年
藤岡信勝, 他.『検定不合格 新しい歴史教科書』. 自由社. 2020年
山田康弘. 『地図でスッと頭に入る 縄文時代』. 昭文社. 2021年
他
●Web site●
チノポス 日本史
http://chinopos.jp/user/teacher/25
【公式】竹田恒泰チャンネル 2. 『竹田学校』. 2020年
テンミニッツTV
【核DNAから探る】日本列島人は、どこからやって来たのか？｜斎藤成也. 2021年
他
【Source of pictures and music】
Aomori Prefecture, Tourism and International Affairs Strategy BureauAso City
Aquamarine Fukushima
Ichihara Cultural Property Center
Iwate Prefecture Tourism Association
JOMON ARCHIVES
Nojiriko Naumann Elephant Museum
NPO築地食のまちづくり協議会 築地場外市場商店街振興組合
Omori Shell Mounds Park
Shinagawa Historical Museum
Shinagawa Ward Board of Education
The Niigata Prefectural Museum of History
TOYOSU MARKET ASSOCIATION
illust AC
photo AC
photolibrary
Audiostock
【Note】
・Movies of the lecture is based on reference of books and movies about history of Japan.
If I find out new information, I’ll share those to you. If I find out correction about the contents, I’ll revise it.
・I sometimes state my point of view in the movies.
・I do content planning, photo taking, video shooting, recording, editing by myself to produce the movie.
Although I’m an amateur creator of the movie, I try to improve my skill to produce better quality contents.
・About the name of persons. In Japan, the family name comes first and the given name comes after. But in this video, for convenience, the given name comes first and the family name comes after, in accordance with the viewers in many Western countries.
【Contact】
masashi.kaki.design@gmail.com
#HistoryOfJapan #Jomon #JapaneseTourGuide