The Horror

I got to thinking today about kofun grave goods. Why would a leader place tons of swords, armor, beads, jewels, crowns, mirrors, treasures, etc…in the tomb? I believe the common answer is for status recognition. But, recognition by *whom*? After the goods are placed inside, no one can see them, so the recognition obviously can’t come from mortals. Therefore, it seems to me that the ancient Japanese used the burial goods as status indicators for the next life (who knows what the ancient Japanese thought came after death, though), as the only individuals who could use the contents of the tombs to judge the interred would be immortals.

On the other hand, couldn’t the ancient Yamato kings have been, simply, selfish bling hoarders? They conquered for their treasure and hoarded it for themselves during their own lifetime–why not keep it to themselves after death?

Ancient Japanese history is a difficult subject to study because it’s not simply memorization of estimated dates of migrations or volcanic eruptions. There’s so much guessing and supposing involved that at the end of the day, I feel like I’ve written my own version of a sci-fi history book. How much came from my own imagination–what I wanted to see in the ancient people. How much came from responsible and logical reading of the archaeological and textual clues? How much did I completely make up because I was following the wrong rabbit trail?

History is getting more and more confusing.

Keeping up (Takamatsuzuka) Appearances

It’s been a while since I’ve posted any updates on the Takamatsuzuka Kofun situation. I’ve been busy reading Kidder’s new book on Himiko (information can be found in a post a little ways down the page). Here’s what’s happening:

5/30/07 – Successful removal of the roof of the stone sarcophagus. From here, the plan is to remove the east and west walls (which bear Seiryuu 青龍 and Byakko 白虎, respectively) in June.

5/30/07 – Because the eastern wall (Seiryuu) is in worse shape than the western wall (Byakko), preference is being given to the former. Both are scheduled to be removed in June.

5/25/07 – Good picture of the Asuka Beauties: here.

West Wall — Open to the Press

The west wall (which bears the Asuka Beauties) is currently open to the press at the restoration facility. You can find the story: here.

The wall, itself, can be seen: here.

The massive block (side wall of the stone chamber) has a layer of rayonne paper to reinforce it. However, you can still see through the paper and see the vibrant colors of the mural. It seems that before opening it up to the press corps, the dirt was carefully cleaned off first. The block hasn’t been damaged by the process, but small cracks, craters, and mold have been found decorating the ancient stone wall.

The S-A journal of Japanese History

Straight from the Shogun Yashiki, a recent post by the webmaster of the Samurai Archives Japanese History Page had this to say:

I am currently developing a Japanese history journal tentatively scheduled for 2008. The rationale behind this is relatively straightforward. Academic journals tend to only publish academics, and so I’d like to circumvent that – and they tend to shy away from military history, and biography. The S-A Journal will be open to all submissions, from amateur historians to academics to published historians. The submissions will be evaluated separately from the credentials of the writer, allowing anyone with the theories, ideas, and ability to make for a well written, academically sound, and interesting research to be published. The intention is to hold the articles to a very high standard – similar standards that an academic journal would hold, and within the next few weeks I’ll be unveiling the Journal website that will have information on submission requirements and standards. Additionally, I will have a staff of editors and evaluators to assist in the evaluation of submitted articles.

As for “how does this stand apart from the other academic journals”? – my aim is to focus more on the military history, and the personalities of Japanese history, rather than social issues, “intellectual history”, and how (for example) Daimyo administered thier lands, and all of the other stuff that is the vogue of the academic journals – and as previously mentioned, to allow anyone with valid theories and solid scholarship to be published.

The intention is to publish the stuff that people want to read, not the stuff that you are forced to write if you want to get into an academic journal. So stay tuned for more information.

I’m very excited about this venture! I do hope to submit my most recent research on the symbolism, architecture, and evolution of kofun. My study is shaping up well – I’ve almost reached 20 pages in Word. And that’s only the information gleaned from English sources. My semester just ended, so I’ve got a summer of Japanese translation work ahead of me! What a summer!

Back to Genbu

「玄武」壁画の取り外し成功…高松塚石室解体

4月17日12時59分配信 読売新聞

奈良県明日香村、高松塚古墳（８世紀初め）の石室解体作業で、文化庁は１７日、極彩色壁画のうち、四神の一つ「玄武」が描かれた北壁の取り外しに成 功した。壁画や石材に目立った損傷はないという。５日の天井石に続いて二つ目の取り外しだが、壁画が描かれた石材は初めて。同庁は今後、星宿がある天井石 や、「飛鳥美人」などが描かれた側壁を順次、取り出す。北壁は午後、修理施設に運ばれる。北壁の取り外しは午前１０時２４分、スタート。油圧と手動で、П （パイ）形の固定具を両側面に取りつけて、クレーンで約１０センチ浮かせ、ゆっくりと北側約５０センチに置いた鉄製フレームの台座の上に下ろした。

最終更新:4月17日12時59分

On the issue of the removal of the north wall (on which is painted Genbu):

The wall was transported to the restoration facility successfully without any damage to speak of. The process of removal, itself, is very interesting, involving steel framing and a crane! I wonder if there is any video footage.

Asuka Beauties — Success!

The wonders of WordPress allow me to see what google searches bring people to my blog. An overwhelming amount of people are searching for information on the Takamatsuzuka murals and the state of the repairs. Since that is what people are interested in, I guess that’s what I’ll be writing about in these upcoming weeks.

The Asuka Beauties have been successfully moved. The following news story is from today, March 10th. It relays that the workers separated the west wall (on which was painted the Asuka Beauties) from the rest of the stone chamber. The west wall alone is said to weigh 515 kilograms! It has a width of 78 centimeters, a height of 116 centimeters, and a thickness of 37 centimeters! The process of carefully separating it from the rest of the stone chamber involves a neat process of using steel framing and a crane.

http://headlines.yahoo.co.jp/hl?a=20070510-00000514-yom-soci
高松塚古墳、「飛鳥美人」取り外しに成功…最大のヤマ越す

5月10日22時39分配信 読売新聞

　奈良県明日香村、高松塚古墳（８世紀初め）の石室解体で、文化庁は１０日、国宝の極彩色壁画のうち、「飛鳥美人」と呼ばれる女子群像が描かれた北端の西側壁（幅７８センチ、高さ１１６センチ、厚さ３７センチ、重量５１５キロ）の取り外しに成功した。

古代史ブームを起こした、代表的な壁画の救出に成功したことで、石室解体プロジェクトは最大のヤマ場を越えた。

西側壁をジャッキで床石から浮かせ、すき間にステンレス板を差し込み、その間にコロとなる鉄製の棒をはさみこんで転がし、南側の側壁と分離した。

続いて、П（パイ）型固定具で挟んで浮かせ、石室北隣に置いた金属フレームの台座に下ろして全体をフレームで固定、再びクレーンであげて、作業スペース に運んだ。この際、ワイヤがずれ、空中で側壁がぐらついたが、損傷などはなかった。１１日の午前中にも修理施設に運ぶ予定。

From a news story that broke yesterday, scientists examining the Asuka Beauties before successfully transferring them:

The Beauties