Kofun group in Gobo City — Wakayama Prefectural Historic Site. Representative mounds: No.3 (~28m round, early 5th century) and No.1 (19.3m square, mid-7th century). The most important kofun group in the Hidaka region for documenting chieftain lineages from the Middle through Terminal Kofun periods. Mound No.3 is one of the oldest Middle period mounds in the Hidakagawa basin.
Finds & research
No.3: Detailed grave goods unknown (partially unexcavated). No.1: Two split-bamboo wooden coffins, ear rings, haji ware (Gobo City Designated Cultural Properties).
Two views on the occupant
Archaeological view
Kofun group in Iwanai, Gobo City. Designated mounds are No.1 (square mound, 19.3m per side, mid-7th century) and No.3 (round mound, ~28m diameter, early 5th century). Mound No.3 is one of the oldest Middle Kofun period burials in the Hidaka River basin, documenting the introduction of kofun culture to the region. Mound No.1 is a terminal-period square mound with two split-bamboo wooden coffins in the stone chamber. Finds include ear rings and haji ware (Gobo City Designated Cultural Properties). The Hidaka region — the central Wakayama area along the Hidakagawa River — has been an archaeological blank spot; this group is one of the few sites attesting to a chieftain lineage in the area.
Imperial Household Agency view
Not designated by the IHA. Wakayama Prefectural Historic Site (Mound No.1: 1979, No.3: 1980).
Field notes
About 10 min by car from central Gobo City. Taxi from JR Kisei Main Line Gobo Station. A benchmark site for understanding kofun culture in the central Wakayama (Hidaka) region.