Consideration of the shellfish use in the early modern times post-town Yokkaichi site

Yokkaichi site is post-town located in Saijo basin of Higashihiroshima city. Yokkaichi post-town was known to exist by illustrated houses map and historical records, specific aspects by excavation revealed. Though it is in the inland, a lot of marine products are excavated. In this paper, I report the characteristics of the excavated shellfish, to discuss the distribution of marine products in the post-town. As a result of the analysis, 16 kinds of shellfish have been identified, and the most was marine shellfish, and these species are also rare in the sites of the coastal areas.　Features of shellfish composition is to occupy overall half in rock shell (Rapana venosa ) and horned turban (Turbo cornutus ), and to be followed by razor shell (Solen strictus ) and scallop (Pecten albicans). It can be pointed out to be different from the sites of Hiroshima Bay area in the feature of the shellfish composition. It is also a specific point that a lot of big rock shells are carried to the Yokkaichi site. The specificity of the excavated shellfish is a characteristic of post-town located in the inland area, and it is considered to indicate that the ingredients of the food to be provided to the daily diet of the people living there and travelers were different. Additionally, although in the literature has been left a record that ate the oysters of Kaita (Hiroshima Bay area) in the Yokkaichi post-town, the distribution route of seafood is likely to be Mitsu (current Akitsu area), because Mitsu Shou-okan starting from Mitsu to Saijyo Yokkaichi was used in those days. It was possible to report the interesting marine shellfish use in the early modern times　post-town located in the inland

Changes in the use of shellfish based on a survey of the Kasumi campus and the Hiroshima Bay coastal area

In this paper, I discuss the shellfish collected from the Kasumi campus during a 2010 survey of the Hiroshima Bay area, as well as how their use changed since the Jomon period. Seventy-five archaeological shellfish specimens were collected from sites dating from the Jomon to modern periods, many of which were Yayoi and medieval. The remains of the Jomon and Yayoi periods are located slightly more inland from the current coastline and further upstream, in other words, in the inner part of Hiroshima Bay, and the medieval remains are located near the modern coastline. From the Kasumi campus specimens, five types of snails and nine types of bivalves were identified. Overall, oysters (Crassostrea gigas) were the most common, followed by clams (Meretrix lusoria), and Japanese littleneck clams (Ruditapes philippinarum), wedge-shaped surf clams (Mactra veneriformis), top shells (Rapana venosa), and others were used to varying degrees during these periods. Oysters were observed during stage I (middle and late Jomon period), and during stages II-Ill (middle and late Jomon period), various species, mainly clams, were found. In the last Jomon period, blood cockle (Tegillarca granosa) was also used a lot, and oysters were commonly used at some sites in the early and late Yayoi periods. Oysters again became the main constituent during stage N (Kofun to the Nara and Heian periods), and during stage V (from the Nara and Heian periods to the middle ages), some clams and Japanese littleneck clams (Ruditapes philippinarum) were found, but oysters remained the main constituent. The presence of Japanese basket clams (Corbicula japonica) at Hiroshima Castle during this period is likely due to its coastal environment in the early modern period. It is probable that during the late and final Jomon period, oysters, Japanese littleneck clams, and other types of clams were collected from the tidal flats. Muddy mudflats were formed as the sea level decreased, and the marine environment's salt concentration decreased slightly. Most oysters were likely obtained from these mudflats. In the Yayoi period, farming was presumed to have started in the Hiroshima Bay area, causing people to move inland in search of wider flatlands, but as shellfish-gathering activities also continued, many shell mounds formed in these inland areas. After the small sea level regression during the Yayoi period, the sea level rose again, and people's lifestyle changed to mainly gathering hard clams. In the Nara, Heian, and medieval periods, shell mounds formed near sea areas, and hard clams were used mainly for half-crenated ark (Scapharca kagoshimensis), Japanese littleneck clams, and oysters. Japanese littleneck clams, oysters, and wedge-shaped surf clams are the most commonly used hard clams in the modern period, but with the development of the distribution network, shellfish that live in slightly deeper waters and reefs, such as abalone and horned turbans (Turbo cornutus), were able to be transported to samurai residences. Therefore, in the modern period, their presence does not directly indicate a contemporary marine environment near the archaeological site, but it may indicate that particular shellfish species were selectively collected. The shellfish analysed from the Kasumi campus and the Hiroshima Bay survey revealed that shellfish remained a consistent part of people's lives, but that different periods preferred different types

Medieval and Premodern Haji ware cooking jar and pot excavated from the Kagami-Senninzuka and Kagami-Nishitani Sites in the Higashi-Hiroshima Campus

The southern foot of the Kagamiyama Castle Site is an important area for understanding the culture of the Saijo Basin in the Middle Ages. We report a medieval and premodern Haji ware cooking pot and jar that were excavated from the Kagami-Senninzuka and Kagami-Nishitani Sites of the Higashi-Hiroshima campus. We confirmed the presence of numerous jars with triangular or u-shaped brims under the mouth edge (Haji ware cooking jar F). Jars in which the brim opens into a socket have also been confirmed (Haji ware cooking jars B and C). Some pot bodies with brims (Haji ware cooking pots A and B), inner ear (Haji cooking jar D), leg of hoot jar and pot hanger have been confirmed as well. The wing-shaped pots of the Aki and Bingo areas are classified into Class 2 (F-A, F-B), and the Kagami Area mainly consists of F-B type pots with a rich distribution in the Saijo Basin. Changes such as the things which there is body outwardly are accepted by a thing having a long brim, and it is thought that I have width at the use time of remains. The discovery of numerous Middle Ages cooking utensils in the Saijo Basin provided useful information with regard to medieval production and distribution. In the future, we would like to investigate the remains of other relics located in the surrounding area

Features and considerations of Bouei-shoku vessels (canning substitutes) excavated from the Kasumi Area remains

Bouei-shoku vessels made of earthenware as substitutes for canning and vacuum sealing food were produced from around 1943 until the end of the Second World War in 1945. Although production and distribution spanned only a few years, their remains symbolise the technology and history of Japanese culture and ceramics at the end of the Second World War. Nine types of Bouei-shoku vessels were excavated from the Kasumi Area remains. The same materials were confirmed in the remains from various parts of Japan. I collected and classified materials from 28 sites, including the Kasumi Area. The results of the analysis revealed the following: Bouei-shoku vessels were found in areas ranging from Aomori to Kagoshima, confirming 12 different control numbers. These control numbers imprinted on the bottom of each relic indicated the four production regions, Tajimi, Hishino, Arita and Shiota. Additionally, while the form of the product was made to the same standard, the character notation and colour exhibited different attributes depending on the place of production. Control number 1 was found to be produced in Hishino, Seto City; numbers 3 and 5 in Tajimi, Gifu; number 15 in Arita-cho, Saga; and number 18 in Shiota­ cho, Saga. Of all sites, the Kasumi Area has the most variety and quantity of Bouei-shoku vessels. Many food items in the vessel are believed to have been transported because·the Kasumi Area was a military facility located between Aichi/Gifu and Arita/Shiota, which was the centre of production

埋蔵文化財および歴史資料への理解と教育普及のための広島大学総合博物館での取り組み : 展示・講演会・研究を中心として

本稿では，文化財保護の意義や理解を深めるための博物館活動の取り組みの中から，埋蔵文化財に関わる「展示」，「講演会」，「研究」実績について整理し，その成果や課題から広島大学総合博物館における有効な活動について考察した。「展示」は，企画展や出前博物館，またその巡回展などについて報告し，「講演会」は，全学の学生を主な対象とした文化財保護に関する講演会と，地域の文化財と周辺地域の調査成果を比較したシンポジウムについて紹介した。また，「研究」は，博物館所蔵の資料に加え，周辺遺跡と係わる研究や調査の成果について，展示や講演会と関連付けながら推進していることを述べた。これらの活動によって，地域の文化や資源利用などの歴史について，幅広い年齢層で関心が高められるなどの一定の成果が得られた。それぞれの活動は視点を変えて繰り返し各地で実施していくことや幅広く広報すること，また文理融合的な内容も効果的であることなどを指摘し，広島大学総合博物館における埋蔵文化財に係わる教育普及活動の展望をまとめた。I report exhibitions, lectures, and research results related to buried cultural properties as a part of museum activities conducted in the last ten years—aimed at deepening our understanding of these properties. I also explain the significance of cultural property protection and consider effective activities based on the results and issues. Special exhibitions at different museums, traveling exhibitions, and lectures on the protection of cultural properties will be introduced to students at Hiroshima University. The university held a symposium comparing local cultural properties of Early modern castle and castle town sites with the results of surveys of Japan’s Chugoku and Shikoku regions. Besides the materials in the museum's collection, we are promoting the results of studies and surveys related to the surrounding ruins in conjunction with exhibitions and lectures. We found an increased interest in the history of local culture and resource use among various age groups. Finally, each activity will be held several times in each region from different perspectives and widely publicized to effectively integrate content from the humanities and sciences

Porcelain with “Hirodai Byoin” mark excavated from the Kasumi Campus of Hiroshima University <Research section: Study 2>

A lot of porcelain tableware stamped "Hirodai Byoin" mark was excavated from the Kasumi Campus of Hiroshima University. There is a kind of plural in tableware a bowl, a lid, a pot and a dish. "Hirodai Byoin" is pushed towards tableware respectively by blue, pink and green glaze, and a single line or a double line is drawn on the edge with the same color.　　 The design of the "MINO" mark entered the bottom, and these tableware understood that it was porcelain produced in Mino Ceramic Co., Ltd. It became clear that these tableware was used in a Showa period for a dining room use and the inpatients of the Hiroshima University Hospital. These ceramic ware clarify the history and the culture of the university hospital, the production district of ceramics and the circulation of the Showa period

東広島キャンパス出土弥生土器と西条盆地土壌の砂粒分析と同位体比からみた土器粘土産出地の一考察

To assess the production and distribution of Yayoi pottery in the Saijo Basin, we conducted sand grain and isotope analyses of pottery and soil. The former was performed using the following materials: six pieces of Late Yayoi period pottery excavated from the Kagaminishitani (KN) site, four from the Yamanakaikeminami 2 (YM2) site, 10 soil samples from the Saijo Basin, four from the KN site, and three from the YM2 site. The analyses revealed that the main composition of the Saijo Basin soil is quartz mineral and granite rock fragments, most contain mica, and NO.5 (HH-S-05) is prominent. Pottery from the KN site contains a lot of quartz and granite, and almost no tuff. The grain size composition of the clay of the Saijo group pottery (KN-P-05-07) is mainly composed of coarse- and medium-grained sand. Southern Bingo group pottery (KN-P-01-02) has a high ratio of ultra-fine sand. The soil from the KN site contains a lot of mica, but it contains almost no earthenware. The pottery from the YM2 site contains almost no mica or tuff, while the soil contains small amounts, which is different from earthenware. The characteristics are also different from the soil from KN. Strontium (Sr)-Neodymium (Nd)-Lead (Pb) isotope analysis of two soil samples indicated that the isotope ratio of the Saijo Basin was different from that of the Takamatsu Plain and Mt. Hiei. If the isotope ratio of the soil, which has characteristics similar to those of YM2 pottery, matches, this will provide strong evidence of the production area. The pottery from KN also has different compositions between the Saijo and southern Bingo groups, so it is possible that the results of isotope analysis will prove that the production areas are different. Increasing the number of samples and considering the results of isotope analysis are future tasks. The fact that we were able to determine the characteristics of the soil of the Saijo Basin and the rock and mineral composition and grain size of the excavated Yayoi pottery is a great achievement.本研究は、総合地球環境学研究所の同位体環境学共同研究事業の支援により行っ

A strontium isotope analysis on the relationship between ritual tooth ablation and migration among the Jomon people in Japan

patterns can be discerned in the extensive ritual tooth ablation found among the human skeletal remains of the Late-Final Jomon period (ca. 3200-2800 cal BP) in Japan. Based on comparative observations of sex and grave patterns in the skeletal remains, two major patterns in ritual tooth ablation, termed type 4I and type 2C, have been assigned to locals and immigrants, respectively. In order to test this hypothesis, strontium (Sr) isotope (87Sr/86Sr) analyses were performed on human skeletal remains from the Yoshigo shell mound in Aichi Prefecture, central Japan. Plants in the surrounding area were also examined to illustrate the geographic 87Sr/86Sr distribution. The Sr isotopic variation in human tooth enamel (87Sr/86Sr = 0.70868-0.71028) was greater than that in human bones (87Sr/86Sr = 0.70871-0.70943). Individuals with higher Sr isotope ratios in their tooth enamel than seawater Sr values of 0.7092 can be identified as immigrants (36% of population). The presence of these isotopically identified immigrants between both type 2C and type 4I individuals does not support the previous hypothesis. The intra-population 87Sr/86Sr distribution of tooth enamel of type 2C individuals showed a significantly higher mean ratio than that of type 4I individuals, suggesting a higher proportion of immigrants among the former

Homogeneous diet of contemporary Japanese inferred from stable isotope ratios of hair.

現代日本人の均質な食生活 ―髪の毛の安定同位体分析から―. 京都大学プレスリリース. 2016-09-20.The globalization of food production and distribution has homogenized human dietary patterns irrespective of geography, but it is uncertain how far this homogenization has progressed. This study investigated the carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios in the scalp hair of 1305 contemporary Japanese and found values of -19. 4 ± 0. 6‰ and 9. 4 ± 0. 6‰ (mean ± SD), respectively. Within Japan, the inter-regional differences for both isotope ratios was less than 1‰, which indicates low dietary heterogeneity among prefectural divisions. The carbon and nitrogen isotope ratios of the hair showed a significant correlation with the results of questionnaires on self-reported dietary habits. The carbon isotope ratios from Japan were lower than those in samples from the USA but higher than those in samples from Europe. These differences stem from the varying dietary proportions of food products originally derived from C3 and C4 plants. The dietary variation of Japan is as small as those of Europe and USA and smaller than those of some Asian countries. These results indicate that dietary homogeneity has progressed in Japan, which may indicate the influence from the spread of the Western-style diet and food globalization, although dietary heterogeneity among countries is still preserved