Official estimates differ: the Agency for Cultural Affairs gives about 270 mounds beginning in the early 6th century, while Taishi Town gives over 200 beginning around the mid-6th century. The Agency reports that more than 80 have been excavated.
Finds & research
Finds include Sue ware, miniature cooking sets, gilt-bronze shoes, pendant earrings, and a ring-pommel sword fitting. The Agency for Cultural Affairs and Taishi Town infer involvement of immigrant-derived communities; individual occupants are unknown.
Official status & archaeological view
Official status
It was designated a National Historic Site on 7 October 1994.
Archaeological view
A large mound group on hills spanning Taishi and Kanan. The Agency for Cultural Affairs counts about 270 mounds, mostly round mounds about 15–20m across with a few square mounds. Apart from several direct wooden-coffin burials, most contain horizontal stone chambers, often with two to four coffins and evidence of additional burials. The Agency dates construction from the early 6th century, peaking in the late 6th and ending by the first half of the 7th.
Field notes
Part of the group is open within the Osaka Prefectural Chikatsu Asuka Fudoki-no-Oka historical park. Follow the designated public area and trails.