![Japan Heritage Kofun landscapes in the southern lands of Miyazaki ‐Monuments of the ancients‐[スマートフォン版]](/en/img/common/logo-h.svg){kind=logo}
Various kofun landscapes around the Saitobaru Burial Mounds
There are other groups of mounded tombs with few surrounding buildings besides the Saitobaru Burial Mounds.
Mochida Burial Mounds
In the middle of the rural landscape that spreads out on the plateau to the north of the Omaru river, many round burial mounds (kofun) were built along with keyhole-shaped burial mounds named Hakarizuka, Ishifunezuka, and Yama-no-kamizuka, giving the impression that they are part of the daily life of the people here. In addition, there are many kofun scattered on the tongue-shaped plateau that extends toward the east. Around the keyhole-shaped kofun at the tip of it, there is a group of giant stone statues built to comfort the souls of the people resting in the burial mounds because of the history of large-scale reckless excavations occured in the early Showa period (1926-1989). Beyond the fields below the keyhole-shaped kofun, with the view of the blue Hyuga-nada sea stretching far to the east, one can almost feel the sense of adoration of the people who lived in the distant Kofun period for the land of the great king beyond the sea.
Nyutabaru Burial Mounds
Nyutabaru Burial Mounds are situated on a plateau on the eastern Hitotsuse River. In an open field that stretches as far as the eye can see lay keyhole-shaped mounded tombs with rounded rear portions, such as the Suijinzuka, Hataorizuka, and Mukadezuka burial mounds. In addition to these, scattered round mounded tombs and square mounded tombs appear to float on the landscape. These burial mounds, constructed by the people of the Kofun period, coexist in the landscape with the fields created by following generations. This was only made possible by cultivating the land in a way that also preserved these kofuns, which reflects the underlying awe and admiration that Japanese people through to the modern day have had for the kofuns. There are also humorous haniwas (ceramic clay figures) that have been excavated from the Mukadezuka Burial Mound that help provide us with picture of life in the Kofun period.
Ikime Burial Mounds
Appearing as a thick cluster of trees spread over a small hill on the banks of the Oyodo River, closer inspection reveals keyhole-shaped mounded tombs and round mounded tombs. In one corner of the site, there is a particularly striking keyhole-shaped mounded tomb with a round rear portion. The mound has been restored to its original white stone dome. Standing on the top of the mound reveals the majesty and formative arts of the period, and radiates the energy that must have been used in constructing the kofuns. Ikime Burial Mounds offers a landscape in which you can experience a kofun that became a forest, a way of appreciating the many centuries that have passed since its construction, in contrast with a kofun that has been restored to its original appearance.
Hasugaike Cave Tomb Cluste
The Hasugaike Cave Tomb Cluster is situated beside a seaside pond where lotus flowers bloom. It comprises corridor-style burial mounds with horizontal lateral entrances in the southernmost point of the archipelago. These tombs were built by digging a horizontal corridor into the hard rock of the hill. After construction, the entire hill became a forest of evergreen and deciduous broadleaf trees. It has turned into a landscape that stands in a still-life obscurity, as if it has been forgotten by time and hidden by nature.