A square mound 36m on a side and 6m high, built south of the Nakatsuhime mausoleum alongside Nakayamazuka and Yashimazuka Kofun. The three align their southern edges and share a moat, an unusual arrangement; the moat is preserved underground. It is dated to the middle phase of the Middle Kofun period. Part of the National Historic Site Furuichi Kofun Group, it is a constituent monument of the Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Group World Heritage Site, inscribed in 2019.
Finds & research
Tuff exposed on the summit is thought to be material from the burial facility. The mound shares its moat with Nakayamazuka and Yashimazuka, and cylindrical haniwa have been recovered from it. The moat is preserved underground.
Official status & archaeological view
Official status
Administered by Fujiidera City as a national historic site. Designated a National Historic Site in 1956 and incorporated into the National Historic Site Furuichi Kofun Group in 2001. Only Suketayama is a national historic site; Nakayamazuka and Yashimazuka are managed by the IHA.
Archaeological view
The occupant is unknown; it is dated to the middle of the Middle Kofun period by the Agency for Cultural Affairs, to the early 5th century by Fujiidera City, and to the first half of the 5th century by the official World Heritage website. A 1999 Fujiidera City Board of Education bulletin, however, presents two views: the 5th century, based on haniwa from the moat, and the Terminal Kofun period (7th century), reading the stone exposed on this mound’s summit as the ceiling slab of a horizontal-entrance stone chamber and noting that no cylindrical haniwa or stone facing have been found. The westernmost of the "Mitsuzuka" trio; from west to east: Suketayama, Nakayamazuka, Yashimazuka. One of the "Mitsuzuka" (Three Mounds) south of Nakatsuyama Kofun (290m).
Field notes
The official World Heritage site gives about a 7-minute walk south from Kintetsu Hajinosato Station (Minami-Osaka Line).