宮崎横穴墓群：朝鮮半島製造“銀装圓頭大刀”等大量陪葬品

A few weeks ago the Mainichi News on-line reported the following:

宮崎横穴墓群:朝鮮半島製「銀装円頭大刀」など大量副葬品

毎日新聞　2015年01月19日　22時03分（最終更新　01月20日　00時08分）

　宮崎県えびの市教委は１９日、同市島内の「島内地下式横穴墓群」（５〜６世紀ごろ、古墳時代）で、装飾された朝鮮半島製の「銀装円頭大刀」など武器、武具を中心とした大量の副葬品を納めた有力者の墓が見つかったと発表した。未盗掘で、繊維や革が多数残存するなどほぼ完全な状態で見つかっており、市教委は「極めて珍しい例だ」としている。

　墓は道路工事に伴う調査で昨年１０月に見つかり、内部を調査していた。副葬品とともに男女と見られる２体の人骨が見つかった「玄室」は奥行き約２．２５メートル、幅約３．１メートル、高さ９４センチ。墓群約１６０基の中で最大級で、大和政権からの甲冑（かっちゅう）が含まれ、朝鮮半島とも直接交流のあった有力首長の墓と見られている。地下式横穴墓は南九州に特有の埋葬形式。

　刀身部分などに銀メッキが施された銀装円頭大刀は長さ約８０センチ、刃部幅約３センチ。矢羽根に黒漆装飾などがある矢約３００本や金銅製の装飾付き馬具２組、直径１５．５センチの銅鏡なども見つかった。通常は腐ってしまう繊維や革が良好な状態で残り、当時の製作技術や原形を知る上で貴重という。

　調査に携わった鹿児島大の橋本達也准教授（考古学）は「甲冑や銅鏡は大和政権との強いつながりを示し、武器・武具の質と量から武人的な首長と見られる。朝鮮半島交渉などに関わり活躍し、功績が評価された人物の可能性がある」と話している。

　同墓群からはこれまで計約１５００点の副葬品が見つかり、うち１０２９点が２０１２年に国重要文化財に指定されている。【重春次男】

(試譯文)

On the 19^th (January) Ebino city Education School Board of Miyazaki Prefecture announced that at Shimauchi of the same city they found, inside the “Shimauchi underground lateral holes tomb" (around 5^th - 6 ^th century Tumulus period), a great deal of burial items such as the "Silver wrapped circular head long sword" etc. decorated weapons made in Korean Peninsula. As a weapon collection location, it could be a grave of a prominent person. Because the tombs were in an un-robbed state, many fiber and leather were left behind, and most of them were found in perfect conditions. The municipal board of education said that "it is a very rare example".

 The grave was found in October last year during a highway construction survey and its interior was investigated. The "burial chamber", where two skeletons judged to be man and women as well as other burial items were found, was about 2.25 meters in depth, about 3.1 meters in width and 94 centimeters in height. It was the largest in the tombs group of about 160. As armor from Yamato government was included, it was judged to a grave of a strong leader who was also connected with the Korean Peninsula directly. The underground system cave grave burial style was peculiar to Southern Kyushu.

 A circular head long sword, with silver plating applied to the sword blade etc., was about 80 centimeters in length; its cutting portion was about 3 centimeters in width. About 300 arrows decorated with black lacquer arrow feather, two sets of harness with gilded bronze-made decoration, and a bronze mirror of 15.5 centimeters in diameter were found. The fiber and leather which would usually turn bad were in good conditions. It was say that they were valuable because we could know the manufacturing method in those days and see items in their original forms.

 Tatsuya Hashimoto the associate professor (Archaeology) of Kagoshima University who had participated in this investigation said that "the armor and bronze mirror indicate a strong connection with the Yamato government. Judged from the quality of the weapon and the amount of arms, the tomb was considered to be for an army leader. There is a possibility that this person was connected with the Korean Peninsula negotiations and had played an active role, and was regarded as meritorious".

 Up to now a total of about 1,500 items of burial items were found from the said grave group, and among them 1,029 items had been designated in 2012 as important national cultural asset.

Obviously it is an important historical finding for the study of relationship and cultural flows between Japan and the Korean peninsula in those days.