Light shed on Japan's northern "barbarians" who refused to be ruled
Rebecca Lann
NEWS: In ancient times, northern Honshu and southern Hokkaido were
considered untamed lands inhabited by mysterious barbarians who
refused to be ruled by Japanese emperors.
Much remains a mystery about the northern ``Emishi创 people, but a
recent excavation in Aomori Prefecture sheds some light on the tribes
that had a long history of conflict.
Researchers have dug up an unprecedented number of iron arrowheads, as
well as human remains-one with its hands bound-from the Hayashinomae
ruins near Hachinohe. The discovery suggests a fierce war was fought
at the settlement site in the 10th or 11th century.
The findings also support the theory that the Emishi were forced to
flee the plains and build fortress-type settlements high up in the
mountains to foil enemy attacks.
``The discovery is the first of its kind that proves there was an
ancient society forced to go into fortified settlements because it was
impossible to lead a normal life completely defenseless,创 said Masaki
Kudo, curator of the Tohoku History Museum.
The Emishi tribes defied the emperors during the late Nara (710-784)
and Heian (794-1185) periods, but military pressure forced them to
move farther north.
The Hayashinomae dig revealed the possibility that the Emishi tribes
ended up battling each other in a long civil war in the Tohoku region.
The excavation of Hayashinomae was conducted by the Aomori Prefectural
Archeological Artifacts Research Center. The research took four years
and finished in 2003.
What made the Hayashinomae discovery so unique was the number of iron
arrowheads-about 200-spread out over a wide area.
Arrowheads were usually recovered and recycled after battles. But the
ones at the site appeared to have been left where they fell,
indicating that the battle was too fierce to allow time for
collection-or that there were not enough survivors to do the job.
Ten human remains were also found, but none had received a proper
burial.
At one area in the site, a whole skeleton, with its hands and feet
bound, was discovered. Three skulls and skeletons with missing body
parts were also found.
The findings led the researchers to conclude that the site was once a
settlement that had to be abandoned after exceptionally heavy warfare.
The Hayashinomae ruins are located atop a jutting cliff near the
coastline about 5 kilometers northwest of central Hachinohe.
The research team also recovered 130 dugout housing units in the
cliff. The top of the cliff housed the tribal leader's housing
compound, featuring an outer moat that stretched 30 meters east-west
and 70 meters north-south.
Since the 1990s, researchers have found similar settlements built high
on the mountains and protected by moats or other barriers in Morioka,
Iwate Prefecture, and southern Hokkaido.
The Emishi tribes had settled on the northern plains. But for a
150-year period in the 10th and 11th centuries, they probably moved to
the mountains. Not a single ``general创 settlement in the plains has
been discovered for that 150-year period.
Some specialists believe the mountain habitats were religious
facilities.
But the artifacts from Hayashinomae have given ammunition to those who
believe the mountain accommodations were fortified settlements used to
repulse enemies.
During the eighth and ninth centuries, the emperors were making major
attempts to subjugate the Emishi and gain control over the Tohoku
region, which was rich in horses and gold.
However, the military advances reached a standstill around the area
that is now Morioka.
Emperors switched tactics in the 10th century, demanding tributes
instead of control of the region.
Conventional theory has been that peace prevailed in the Tohoku region
after the new policy was implemented until the War of Zenkunen
(1051-1062) started in the prefectures of Akita and Iwate.
But fortified settlements were cropping up in the latter 10th century,
after the imperial policy change came into effect, indicating that
battles were being waged in the mountains. But the Emishi's enemies at
that time were probably not the emperor's warriors. Instead, the
tribes likely fought each other.
``There must have been internal tribal disputes erupting among the
various Emishi tribes fighting over pipelines with the emperor over
food, arms and riches gained through trade,创 said Kudo, the curator
of the Tohoku History Museum. ``It was a time when the emperor tried
to control the region by manipulating the Emishi against each other.创
Kudo said a large battle among the Emishi at Hayashinomae may have
erupted in the early 11th century.
Although the Hayashinomae site provided some insight into the
mysterious ``barbarians创 of the north, the excavation area is no
more. It fell victim to modern warriors-the ``road tribe创 of the
political world.
copyright 2004 Asahi Shimbun
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