奈良時代官員有吃肉習慣

Recently NHK News reported the following:

奈良市にある平城宮跡から見つかった役人たちの排せつ物とみられる土の中から、生に近い肉を食べるとうつるおそれがある寄生虫の卵が見つかりました。仏教が盛んだった奈良時代には、動物を殺すことを禁じる命令も出されましたが、役人の中には、肉食を好む人たちがいたことを示す資料になりそうです。
寄生虫の卵が見つかったのは、奈良時代の都、平城宮にあった役所の跡です。奈良文化財研究所が調査したところ、役人たちの排せつ物とみられる土の中から肉を生に近い状態で食べた場合にうつるおそれがある寄生虫の卵が検出されたということです。仏教が盛んだった奈良時代には、天皇が数回にわたって牛やイノシシなどの動物を殺すことを禁じる命令を出していますが、研究所では、そうしたなかでも役人たちの一部に肉食の習慣があったことを示す発見だとみています。調査にあたった今井晃樹主任研究員は「肉は食べないという奈良時代のイメージをひっくり返された気がする。役人たちの食生活の一端を明らかにできたのではないか」と話しています。

From the ruins of Heijo Palace in Nara City, nit was found among the soil thought to be the excrement of government officials and this might reflect that they had eaten near raw meat. This finding showed that among the government officials, there were some who liked to eat meat although the instruction that forbade animal killing was issued at the Nara era when Buddhism was so popular.

Nit was found at the ruins of the public office of Imperial prince at the capital of Nara era. According to the Nara culture asset laboratory investigation, from among the soil thought to be government officials' excrement nit was detected and that showed some might have eaten meat in the condition close to raw. It was thought that the discovery had showed that some government officials had the custom of eating meat although the instruction that forbade the killing of cow and wild boar etc. animals had been issued by the emperor several times during the Nara era when the Buddhism was active. Chief researcher Imai who undertook the investigation said ｢It reverses our thinking in the image that meat was not eaten at the Nara era. Part of the government officials' eating habits might have been able to be clarified. ｣

It is an interesting finding. I hope Japanese scholars could continue their studies on people's social life during the Nara period.