Jōmon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan

Timeline

1. c. 13000 BCE

   Odai-Yamamoto Incipient Jomon

   Some of the world's oldest pottery is unearthed at the Odai-Yamamoto site in Aomori, marking the start of sedentary pre-agricultural life.

2. c. 3900 BCE

   Sannai-Maruyama Founded

   A large Jomon settlement of around 500 people takes shape outside modern Aomori, with a six-pillar building, long pit dwelling and cemetery.

3. c. 2000 BCE

   Oyu Stone Circles Built

   The Manza and Nonakado stone circles rise in Kazuno, Akita, aligned to the summer-solstice sunset and forming a precise ritual space.

4. c. 1000 BCE

   Late Jomon Ritual Climax

   In Hachinohe, Aomori, exquisite lacquered ornaments and the praying dogu mark the artistic peak of the Final Jomon spiritual world.

5. 1928

   Oyu First Excavated

   Scientific excavation of the Oyu stone circles begins and the site first draws scholarly attention as a Jomon ritual complex.

6. 1992

   Sannai-Maruyama Rediscovered

   Giant chestnut post holes turn up during baseball stadium construction in Aomori and overturn the textbook image of the Jomon.

7. August 2002

   Governors' Summit

   A four-prefecture governors' summit proposes the Northern Jomon Cultural Corridor concept and launches the World Heritage campaign.

8. 2009

   UNESCO Tentative List

   Listed on UNESCO's Tentative List as 'Jomon Archaeological Sites in Hokkaido and Northern Tohoku', a key step in the long road.

9. 2009

   Praying Dogu Designated

   The praying dogu from Korekawa is named a National Treasure, only the fourth Jomon dogu to receive the honor.

10. December 2019

    Cabinet Approval

    The Japanese cabinet formally approves the nomination and authorizes its submission to UNESCO via the World Heritage Center.

11. May 2021

    ICOMOS Recommends Inscription

    ICOMOS recommends all seventeen component sites for inscription under criteria iii and v, all but assuring the listing.

12. 27 July 2021

    World Heritage Inscription

    The 44th World Heritage Committee inscribes the serial — Japan's first World Heritage built entirely from excavated archaeology.

Detailed History

The story of the Jomon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan begins around 13,000 BCE (Incipient Jomon), when some of the world's oldest pottery was unearthed at the Odai-Yamamoto site in Sotogahama, Aomori. The end of the last glacial period brought warming and the spread of beech forests, and humans turned for the first time to sedentary life. From roughly 3,900 to 2,200 BCE (Middle Jomon), the Sannai-Maruyama site grew into a settlement of perhaps 500 people, with a six-pillar timber building, a 32-meter long pit dwelling, raised earth mounds and a cemetery. DNA analysis of chestnuts found at the site suggests deliberate cultivation, while jade and obsidian show long-distance exchange networks. From about 2,000 to 1,500 BCE (Late Jomon), stone circles appeared at the Oyu site in Kazuno, Akita, and at Komakino in Aomori, with megaliths aligned to the summer-solstice sunset — concrete evidence of an organized cosmological and funerary system. From about 1,000 to 300 BCE (Final Jomon), the Korekawa site in Hachinohe and the Kamegaoka site in Tsugaru produced exquisite lacquered ornaments, goggle-eyed shakoki dogu and the famous praying dogu — the artistic peak of the Jomon spiritual world. The modern history of the World Heritage nomination began with the first scientific excavation of Oyu in 1928, and accelerated in 1992 when the giant post holes at Sannai-Maruyama astounded archaeologists. The serial nomination effort began with a four-prefecture governors' summit in August 2002, and the sites were inscribed on the UNESCO Tentative List in 2009 as 'Jomon Archaeological Sites in Hokkaido and Northern Tohoku.' After five consecutive years of being deferred, the nomination received cabinet approval on December 19, 2019, was submitted to UNESCO in January 2020, was recommended for inscription by ICOMOS on May 26, 2021, and was formally inscribed on July 27, 2021 at the 44th session of the World Heritage Committee. As Japan's first World Heritage site composed entirely of excavated archaeology, it is recognized for the Outstanding Universal Value of more than ten thousand years of pre-agricultural sedentary life and a complex spiritual culture.

Cultural Significance

The Jomon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan were inscribed under UNESCO criteria iii (testimony to a vanished tradition) and v (an outstanding traditional human settlement), recognized as the unique surviving evidence of sedentary life and complex spirituality based on hunting, gathering and fishing before agriculture arrived. All seventeen sites are protected under Japan's Law for the Protection of Cultural Properties, with Sannai-Maruyama, Oyu, Kamegaoka, Korekawa and three others holding the higher Special Historic Site rank. Several excavated artifacts are National Treasures, including the praying dogu from Korekawa, designated in 2009 as only the fourth Jomon-era dogu to receive the honor. Internationally, Jomon culture is celebrated for ten thousand years apparently without large-scale warfare, for being seen as a root of contemporary Japanese cooperative values, and for harmonious coexistence with nature. Some argue the artistic influence of Jomon pottery and dogu on modern art rivals ukiyo-e's influence on Western painting. The serial site also led the 2012 Kyoto Vision's emphasis on community engagement, with volunteer guides and citizen cleanups widespread across the four prefectures. A touring exhibition of all five Jomon dogu National Treasures drew record crowds at the Tokyo National Museum and other venues.

Architectural Details

At Sannai-Maruyama, the famous six-pillar building was reconstructed using six chestnut posts a meter in diameter, set in two rows about 4.2 meters apart, with a total height of roughly 14.7 meters — the largest known Jomon structure. The post holes are two meters deep and two meters wide, the posts were apparently tilted slightly when driven into the ground, and the surfaces seem to have been charred to resist rot. The Great Pit Dwelling measures about 32 meters long, 9.8 meters wide and an estimated 7 meters high, with an elliptical plan; six main posts and many secondary posts carry the beams, and the roof is thought to have been a double layer of earth and thatch. The Oyu stone circles consist of two rings, Manza and Nonakado. Manza is 52 meters across, encircled by some 650 stones with a special central composition, vertical standing stones around the outer ring and a sundial-like arrangement that orients its long axis to the summer-solstice sunset and winter-solstice sunrise. The stones are andesite from the Hanawa River. At the Korekawa site, an exceptional peat layer preserved lacquered wood, fiber goods and ornaments from the Final Jomon. The praying dogu stands 19.8 centimeters tall, hands clasped at the knees in an unusual seated posture; the deliberate breaks at the joints have been interpreted as evidence of a regeneration ritual.