Why Leave Nara? ((Heavy Metal?))

[Ross Bender]

This was the title of an influential article by Ron Toby in Monumenta Nipponica back in 1985. One topic he didn't mention was pollution by heavy metals due to the Daibutsu construction. I have belatedly come across a 2014 article titled "Heavy Metal Pollution in Ancient Nara, Japan, During the Eighth Century" by several Japanese scholars. Bruce Batten and Philip Brown edited a volume in 2015 titled Environment and Society in the Japanese Islands: From Prehistory to the Present (Oregon State University Press) which contained an excellent chapter on settlement patterns and environment in ancient Nara, which mentioned pollution of water supplies by "wastewater from daily business and household activities." As far as I can tell the author, Tatsunori Kawasumi, did not mention heavy metals.

It's heartening to me that there's always more to learn about Nara in the 8th century.

The article is open access:

Heavy metal pollution in Ancient Nara, Japan, during the eighth century | Progress in Earth and Planetary Science | Springer Nature Link

I had never heard or considered that such pollution was another reason to leave Nara, but the authors reject this hypothesis. Here's the abstract:

We quantitatively investigated the eighth century heavy metal pollution in Heijo-kyo (Ancient Nara), the first large, international city of Japan. In this metropolis, mercury, copper, and lead levels in soil were increased by urban activity and by the construction of the Great Buddha statue, Nara Daibutsu. Mercury and copper pollution associated with the construction of the statue was particularly high in the immediate vicinity of the statue, but markedly lower in the wider city environment. We therefore reject the hypothesis that extensive mercury pollution associated with the construction of the Nara Daibutsu made it necessary to abandon Ancient Nara, even though severe lead pollution was detected at several sites. The isotopic composition of the lead indicated that it originated mainly from the Naganobori mine in Yamaguchi, which was a major source of the copper for the Nara Daibutsu.

Ross Bender

The Japanese Imperial Institution in the Eighth Century: Bender, Dr Ross: 9798249616786: Amazon.com: Books