The First Decorated Tomb Found on the Uto Peninsula
The Odara Tomb (小田良古墳, Odara Kofun) is a decorated tomb of the Kofun period on the north shore of the Uto Peninsula at Maehata, Misumi-machi, Uki City, Kumamoto Prefecture, which in 1979 was designated a Historic Site.
The Agency for Cultural Affairs describes it at the tip of a low hill near the shore on the north side of the Uto Peninsula, which juts west between the Ariake and Yatsushiro seas. It seems to have been a round mound about 20 metres across, but most of the mound had already gone.
Because stones from the chamber were piled around it, local people called it Chinkansan, a name Uki City also records.
Discovery and Excavation
The Agency notes that a preliminary survey by the Misumi town board of education in 1977 showed it to be a decorated tomb, and a full excavation followed in 1978.
The top of the tomb had become a field 7.2 metres above sea level, cut down until only the upper edge of the stone screen around the chamber showed. Kumamoto has areas where decorated tombs cluster, but none had been known on the Uto Peninsula.
Uki City says the excavation yielded many beads, bronze bells, other bronze objects, small knives and human bone. To prioritise preservation, not everything was excavated; damaged stones were treated and the chamber was reburied.
The Stone Screen and Its Decoration
The Agency describes four surviving slabs of the stone screen, 1.9 metres east to west, 1.85 metres north to south and 0.65 metres high to the pebble floor, of dressed sandstone 8 centimetres thick. Two rows of dividing stones inside create two burial platforms, north and south, paved with fist-sized pebbles, with a passage between.
All four slabs bear carved and painted decoration: four circles on the north, three circles with two quivers and two shields on the east, three circles on the south and two on the west, each set between two horizontal lines. The circles are 17 to 18 centimetres across, with hollowed centres and two cord-like lines above and below. Red pigment seems to have covered the whole.
From its structure, decoration and finds, the Agency links it to tomb A of the Segonko tombs, also a Historic Site, and dates it to around the beginning of the sixth century; Uki City gives the fifth century, so the dating differs. The Agency stresses the realistic, distinctive decoration of this stone-screen type.
Visiting the Odara Tomb
Uki City says visitors can see only the outside of the chamber, under a protective shelter. A full-size replica of the chamber interior, which cannot be seen on site, is displayed at the Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Decorated Tombs.
The Odara Tomb stands among fields, so do not enter the surrounding farmland. Enquiries go to the Uki City cultural properties section, 0964-32-1954.
Q&A
- When was the Odara Tomb designated?
- It was designated a Historic Site on 23 October 1979.
- What decoration does the Odara Tomb have?
- Circles, quivers and shields carved on the four slabs of its stone screen, once painted red.
- What does Chinkansan mean?
- It is the local name for the Odara Tomb, whose chamber stones were piled up on the site.
- Can I see inside the Odara Tomb?
- Only the outside of the chamber is visible on site; a full-size replica of the interior is at the Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Decorated Tombs.
- When was the Odara Tomb built?
- The Agency dates it to around the beginning of the sixth century; Uki City gives the fifth century.
Basic Information
| Name | Odara Tomb (小田良古墳) |
|---|---|
| Location | Maehata, Misumi-machi, Uki City, Kumamoto Prefecture |
| Designation | Historic Site |
| Year Designated | Designated 1979/10/23 (Showa 54) |
| Quantity | Not recorded in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Dimensions | Stone screen: 1.9 metres by 1.85 metres, 0.65 metres high |
| Owner | Not recorded in the Agency for Cultural Affairs database |
| Public Access | Outside of the chamber visible under a shelter |
References
- Agency for Cultural Affairs Database: Odara Tomb (Japanese)
- https://kunishitei.bunka.go.jp/bsys/maindetails/401/2838
- Cultural Heritage Online: Odara Tomb (Japanese)
- https://online.bunka.go.jp/heritages/detail/139694
- Uki City: Odara Tomb (Japanese)
- https://www.city.uki.kumamoto.jp/kankobunka/bunka/bunkazai/shitei/2268897
- Kumamoto Prefectural Museum of Decorated Tombs: Exhibitions (Japanese)
- https://kofunkan.pref.kumamoto.jp/exhibition/
Last verified: 2026.09.27