GALLERY 1

This gallery presents five thematic displays which elucidate the early development of Japanese civilization from the Paleolithic to the establishment of the Ritsuryo State. Displays introducing numerous Jomon (cord-patterned) pottery; metal tools from the Yayoi period; archaeological findings from the great earthen tombs of the Kofun period, revealing contacts with the Asian continent; objects from Okinoshima Island indicating the beginnings of Shinto rituals; and reduced scale models of Heijo Palace (the Imperial Palace in Nara). Documents from the Shosoin Imperial Storage House lead the visitor from the Prehistoric period to the classical world of Heian-period Japan.

(50000 - 2400 Years Before Present)
Archaeological findings from the Paleolithic to the Jomon period are featured in this display. Observe evidence of the transitions from the life of the earliest known inhabitants of JAPAN to the birth of a distinct culture.


View of the gallery from the entrance	Pottery ware from the Middle Jomon period	Restoration of a house removed from the Maruyama archaeological site in Sannai, Aomori Prefecture
The clay figurine in the foreground could be called a "Jomon-period Venus" (ca. 1800 B.C., late Jomon period).	This display includes pottery ware from various sites in Japan.	This display presents traces of a large-scale village which existed for 1500 years, ca. 3500 B.C. to 2000 B.C. (Early to Middle Jomon period).

(5th Century B.C. to 3rd Century A.D.)
The rice plant was not indigenous to Japan, but was introduced from the Asian continent. Rice began to be grown on a large scale during the Yayoi period. This display shows how the cultivation of rice influenced and changed the lives of people during that time.


Elevated rice storehouse (1st century A.D.)	Ruins of Otsuka (1st Century B.C.)	Bronze bells (Dotaku)
This storehouse was built with a raised floor in order to store harvested rice.	This is an example of a typical village surrounded by creeks and earthen fences.	This bronzeware was used for religious rituals during the Yayoi period. It consists of a hook and a cylindrical body.

(KOFUN Period, 3rd-7th Centuries)
Huge ancient tombs called kofun were built between the 3rd and 7th centuries for the burial of kings and powerful clan leaders. The biggest tomb with a keyhole-shaped burial mound was as much as 486 meters long. This display explains why the great tombs and burial mounds in the various regions continued to be constructed for 400 years.


Scale model of the Hashihaka burial mound (3rd century)	Special pottery jars and jar stands to cylindrical haniwa figures (2nd - 3rd centuries)	Stone sarcophagus (5th century)
This is the largest keyhole-shaped tomb from the early Kofun period. It is 276 meters long.	Cylindrical haniwa figures evidently evolved from special offering jars and jar stands such as those found in late Yayoi-period burial tombs of clan chieftains centered in the area of Kibi (modern Okayama Prefectures).	This stone sarcophagus from the Ofujiyama tomb in Gunma Prefecture consists of several stone pieces.

(4th - 10th Centuries)
Okinoshima Island, a tiny, solitary island in the middle of the Genkai Sea Off the northern coast of Kyushu, measures only 1.5 km from east to west and 1 km north to south. It is a sacred island worshipped since ancient times and with a shrine called Okitsumiya, a branch of Munakata Taisha Shrine. The shrine received offerings to the kami (spirit or god) of the island, and it has become clear that worship was conducted on a grand scale between the 4th and 10th centuries. The surprising splendor of certain extant offerings suggests a connection with the Yamato court and gives national significance to what were probably prayers for safe voyage between Japan and the Korean Peninsula or China.


Scale model showing the distribution of archaeological sites revealing Shinto rituals on Okinoshima Island	A model of an archaeological site (iwakura) No. 17 on Okinoshima Island (second half of the 4th century)	A model of an archaeological site (iwakura) No. 8 on Okinoshima Island (8th century)

(7th - Early 10th Centuries)
At the beginning of the 8th century, the first permanent capital of Japan was constructed in Nara. It spanned 5.9 km from east to west, and its streets were laid on a grid-like plan after Tang-dynasty Chinese urban planning. This city, which featured Sujaku Street, the widest street with a width of 70 meters, and white-walled buildings brightly accented with red and green painted wood, surely astonished people with its beauty. In this display one can get a sense of life in this urban center, as well as in contemporary villages, and document the administration between the central government and the local districts.


Replica of Rajomon (or Rashomon)	Replicas of shields used by soldiers from Kyushu (hayato)	Model of Shosoin Imperial Storage House
This was the main (southern) entrance gate to Heijo capital. It was more than 20 meters high.	These shields bearing magical designs were used by soldiers from Southern Kyushu when they participated in ceremonial rituals at the Capital.	This Imperial elevated storage house made with wood, preserved documents and treasures from the Nara period to modern times.