One of the three great mausolea of Mozunomimihara (the Northern one). A 148m keyhole mound, 14.8m high at the front section, at the northern end of the Mozu area. Built in three tiers on the western edge of the plateau with its axis parallel to the contours and its front section facing south — a siting said to have been chosen with the view from Osaka Bay strongly in mind. A projection sits on the west side of the waist only. One moat is visible today; a second, outer moat once encircled it and survives underground. Located approximately 1.1km north of Daisen Kofun, it marks the northern boundary of the Mozu plateau. Constituent monument of the "Mozu-Furuichi Kofun Group" UNESCO WHS (2019).
Finds & research
The burial facility is unexcavated under IHA management. The outer moat, preserved underground, has yielded cylindrical and figural haniwa and Sue ware. Only the exterior can be viewed, from the surrounding paths.
Official status & archaeological view
Official status
The IHA lists its official form as zenpo-koen (keyhole). Officially designated "Mozunomimihara-no-Kita-no-Misasagi" (Northern Mausoleum of Mozunomimihara) by the IHA, attributed to Emperor Hanzei. The three major mausolea of Mozunomimihara are: Central (Daisen Kofun), Southern (Kamiishizu Misanzai), and this Northern mound.
Attribution (jitei): the Imperial Household Agency's determination of whose tomb it manages — separate from heritage designation.
Archaeological view
Actual occupant unknown. The official World Heritage site dates it to the first half of the 5th century and the Agency for Cultural Affairs to the middle of the Middle Kofun period, while Sakai City's kofun database dates it, from its shape and haniwa, to around the second half of the 5th century and the Sakai Tourism and Convention Bureau to the mid-5th century. The World Heritage site's date broadly overlaps the reign the chronicles assign to Emperor Hanzei (said to be the first half of the 5th century), but nothing archaeological identifies the occupant. Positioned at the northern edge of the Mozu group, this mound defines the northern boundary of the Mozu plateau. Sakai City also notes the view that its shape makes it contemporary with Nisanzai Kofun.
Field notes
The IHA gives about a six-minute walk from Nankai Koya Line Sakaihigashi Station (the official World Heritage site gives seven minutes east of the station). A path along the moat allows a near-complete circuit of the mound. The mausoleum is at 2-chome Kita-Mikunigaoka-cho, Sakai-ku, Sakai, Osaka (the IHA's guide lists the ward as Kita-ku). Per the IHA, worship is generally possible year-round from 8:30 to 17:00. The goryoin (mausoleum seal) is kept at the Furuichi Mausolea Office in Habikino, Osaka, where visitors can use it free of charge (reception 8:30–17:00; staff may be unavailable on weekends, holidays, 29 Dec–3 Jan and some other days).