9 Toyako Town, Hokkaido

Irie Site

Designated as a Historic Site on May 13, 1988
Stage IIIa (ca. 1,800 BCE) (Historic Site [Irie Site and Takasago Burial Site]: ca. 3,500 BCE – 800 BCE)

Pit grave: The bones of an adult affected by muscular atrophy have been found. This person was under care for at least 10 years.

Boar tusk ornament: Made with canines from a wild boar, this ornament was modeled after human teeth.

In-situ shell layer exhibition facility: Located in a historic park, this facility provides a close-up view of shell layers as well as detailed explanations of the archaeological site.

This site is located in Toyako Town in southwestern Hokkaido, on a terrace overlooking Uchiura Bay at an elevation of approximately 20 meters. It is on Uchiura Bay, which abounds in aquatic resources. Deciduous broadleaved forests spread in the hinterland.

The settlement consists of a residential area and a burial area, with shell mounds at the periphery of the terrace and on the slopes of the terrace. The mounds have yielded shells (from short-necked clams, bay mussels, etc.), fish bones (from herring, marbled rockfish, Japanese sea bass, tuna, etc.), mammal bones (from Hokkaido sika deer, dolphins, etc.), and bone and antler objects (fishhooks, harpoons, etc.). These archaeological finds indicate that fishing and hunting were actively practiced.

In the burial area, the bones of an adult male affected by muscular atrophy have been found. They reveal that she managed to live long with paralyzed limbs, probably with the help of others.

This component part, dating from the first half of the maturation stage of sedentism, is a typical example of settlements that were distributed in areas surrounding communal ritual places and cemeteries. It is an important archaeological site that attests to a livelihood and spiritual lifestyle of a coastal area.