Late last year one of my friends posted on Facebook about driving round an area just north of Tokyo in the name of visiting various kofun (ancient burial mounds). The city they’re dotted around was a place I knew about from my last trip to a nearby area five years ago, and seeing his pictures prompted me to finally go there to see it all for myself.

Take the Shonan-Shinjuku Line north of Ikebukuro for about an hour and you’ll arrive in the city of Gyoda which is located in north-central Saitama, with the Tone River separating it from Gunma Prefecture. The Kofun Period is an era in the history of Japan from about 300 to 538 AD which was the date when Buddhism was introduced.

As soon as I arrived at Fukiage station one morning, I headed to the bus station outside and promptly caught a bus close to what is probably the most interesting tomb in the area. I was the only one on the bus for the whole journey which was followed by a ten minute walk from the bus depot.

I say it may be the most interesting one but I don’t really know as I’m just basing that on the fact that Gyoda Hachimanyama Ancient Tomb is the only one which isn’t open 24 hours a day. Not only that but it is only open at weekends between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm so that suggests to me that it is elite level!

One of the signboards in the park has some information about its history in English which is perhaps a little surprising as this is not exactly on the tourist trail for non-Japanese! In fact, I’m not even sure if Japanese themselves visit here as there wasn’t a soul in sight during my time here. Entry is free and there are no staff present so I really did have it all to myself.

Approximately 60 burial mounds were discovered in this area of Saitama with a large number of artifacts unearthed such as pottery and clay figures. Hachimanyama kofun was originally built by human hands in the first half of the 7th century as a large round mounded tomb with a diameter of approximately 80 metres. In 1934, when the kofun was demolished a stone chamber was discovered.

There was a slighly eerie feeling as I crouched down to enter the tomb which consists of three chambers. Once upon a time they housed the period’s most exalted leaders, along with their precious belongings.

However, there is very little to see other than the stone walls now so one just has to admire how it was all constructed by hand as well as imagining what life was like way back in history.

Further excavation research and restoration work was carried out for a few years in the late 1970s. It’s pretty dark inside but on a nice day the sun’s rays do manage to shine some light through the slight cracks in the construction.

A 10 minute walk north of there took me to another tomb site; the Prefecture designated historic site Jizo Tomb (2-28-1 Fujiwaracho, Gyoda, Saitama-ken) which is located in a residential area.

The interior of the stone chamber is closed to the public to protect the line-carved murals within but replicas are on display at the Saitama Prefectural Museum of History & Folklore in Omiya Park.

This one is 28 metres wide and just 4.5 metres in height so reaching the summit doesn’t need a Rocky-style workout! The kofun has been shaped by nature, becoming a pleasant grassy knoll covered with various trees and flowers.

There is a jizo-do hall at the top of the hill.

From the side, you could be forgiven for thinking that it’s nothing more than a small hilly mound yet what lies beneath tells another story.

There are quite a few more tombs located in Gyoda and my plan was to go back a couple of weeks after this visit to see Sakitama Kofun Park but a mix of bad weather, other events, laziness and a real lack of desire meant I didn’t bother. I was satisfied with what I saw on this trip and I’m sure I will go there again one day but it’s not exactly a priority for the time being.

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