8 Historic sites in Saga worth your time

Explore Japan's oldest wet-rice cultivation site with reconstructed dwellings and a museum.

What it is

• A National Historic Site in Karatsu City, Saga Prefecture.
• Japan's oldest wet-rice cultivation site from the Jomon period.
• Discovered in 1979, designated a historic site in 1983.

What to see

• Reconstructed pit dwellings and ancient rice paddies.
• Excavated water channels, weirs, and wooden stakes.
• Malukan museum displays artifacts from the site.
• The site is on a gentle hillside facing a valley plain.

Getting there

• 2 kilometers west of JR Karatsu Station.

Read more about Nabatake Site

Explore a large, ancient keyhole-shaped tomb, a significant historical site in Saga Prefecture.

What it is

• A keyhole-shaped tumulus, Kurisozoi Kofun.
• Designated a Saga Prefecture historic site.
• Discovered in 1980.
• Built around the late 3rd to 4th century.

What to see

• The tumulus is 108.5 meters long.
• Rear circular part is 62.2 meters in diameter.
• Front square part is 42.8 meters wide.
• A vertical stone chamber covered with clay.
• Stone chamber sealed with three sandstone ceiling stones.
• Excavated items include a Banryukyo mirror, beads, and a knife.

Read more about Kurisōzui Burial Mound

Explore a large Yayoi period moated settlement, a designated Special National Historic Site.

What it is

• A large Yayoi period moated settlement.
• Designated a Special National Historic Site.
• Excavation surveys began in 1986.
• Now part of Yoshinogari Historical Park.

What to see

• The settlement spans approximately 117 hectares.
• Double moats from the late Yayoi period.
• The outer moat was about 2.5 kilometers long.
• Multiple watchtowers within the moats.
• North and South burial mounds.
• Unearthed pottery and bronze ware artifacts.

Official site

www.yoshinogari.jp

Read more about Yoshinogari site

Explore Habu Site, a National Historic Site preserving a rare Yayoi period settlement.

What it is

• A settlement ruin from the middle Yayoi period.
• Designated a National Historic Site on June 2, 1973.

What to see

• Five dwelling remains have been detected.
• Excavated pottery from the middle Yayoi period.
• Wooden farming tools like hoes.
• Four carved containers and one black lacquered bowl.
• Carbonized rice, plum, peach, and melon seeds.
• Fifteen pillar materials found in dwelling remains.

Read more about Habu Site

Explore Chōshizuka Kofun, a large 4th-century keyhole-shaped burial mound and National Historic Site.

What it is

• A keyhole-shaped burial mound (kofun).
• Designated a National Historic Site.
• Built around the late 4th century.

What to see

• A 98-meter-long keyhole-shaped tumulus.
• Posterior circular part: 58 meters diameter, 8 meters high.
• Anterior square part: 32 meters wide, 4.6 meters high.
• A moat 16-28 meters wide surrounds the tumulus.
• Built on a 15-meter-high natural elevation.

Read more about Chōshizuka Kofun

Explore ancient burial sites from the Yayoi period, offering a glimpse into early Japanese history.

What it is

• A Yayoi period dolmen cluster.
• Designated a national historic site in 1966.
• Became part of the Karatsu Matsuura Tumuli Group in 2014.
• Discovered during land reclamation in 1951.

What to see

• Five dolmens found during excavations.
• Granite capstones, 1.3 to 2.0 meters long.
• Twenty-six jar burials were detected.
• Seven tubular beads were excavated as grave goods.

Read more about Hayamajiri Dolmen Cluster

Explore Japan's best-preserved Jomon settlement and shell mound, offering a unique glimpse into ancient life.

What it is

• A Jomon period settlement and shell mound.
• Designated a National Historic Site in 2016.
• Discovered in 1990 during a cultural property survey.

What to see

• Japan's oldest woven baskets, combs, and wooden dishes.
• A low-wetland site with plant and animal remains.
• Evidence of 167 stone arrangements and a cemetery.
• Six shell mounds and 155 storage pits.

Read more about Higashimyō Site

Tashiro-Ōta Kofun is a circular burial mound with rare colored murals, a significant National Historic Site.

What it is

• A circular burial mound, designated a National Historic Site in 1926.
• Known as a decorated tomb with colored murals.

What to see

• A two-tiered circular mound, 42m in diameter, 6m high.
• A horizontal stone chamber, 9m long, with three rooms.
• The rear chamber has three burial beds.
• The middle chamber has two burial beds.

Read more about Tashiro-Ōta Kofun