Harunotsuji (Iki)
Harunotsuji Site · Harunotsuji Iki Island Trading Town
Yayoi 300 BCE–300 CE (Ikikoku under Wei Zhi Wa federation)·Yayoi Iki–Tsushima maritime (Wa – Wei Himiko federation)·🇯🇵 Nagasaki Prefecture, Iki Island, Ashibe Town, Haranotsuji hill overlooking Hakata Bay strait (Tsushima Basin maritime hub), Japan
About
About Harunotsuji (Iki)
Wei Zhi One Country of Ikikoku capital (c.300 BCE–300 CE Yayoi hub) at Harunotsuji on Iki Island mid-strait between Kyushu and Korea — 100 ha double-moated maritime trading town with 2 km outer moat and Chinese Han mirror workshop (47 Wei bronze mirrors found) excavated 1996–2000, yielding Changsha–Liaodong bronze swords and Japanese Yayoi–Mumun frontier registry. Harunotsuji is arch-identified as Wei Zhi 'Ikikoku' of 3,000 households under Queen Himiko's federation, with 400 m plaza and warehouse rows controlling Korea–Kyushu Strait maritime passage from Liaodong via Tsushima–Iki to Yoshinogari.
Why it mattersLargest Yayoi maritime trading town and 47-Han-mirror hoard — Wei Zhi Ikikoku core proving Wa maritime hegemony as Himiko's Han gateway.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Why 47 identical Han mirrors cached vs Yoshinogari's single?
- 02Is Iki the Pindao state between Tsushima–Matsurokoku?
Theories
- 01Iki–Tsushima–Hakata bronze mirror redistribution chain; Himiko's Wei silk exchanged at Harunotsuji–Iki market
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c.300 BCE Early Yayoi fishing base; moated town 100 BCE
- Period
- Yayoi 300 BCE–300 CE (Ikikoku under Wei Zhi Wa federation)
- Culture
- Yayoi Iki–Tsushima maritime (Wa – Wei Himiko federation)
- Builders
- Iki mariners and Yayoi Wa federation under Himiko → Iyo
- Purpose
- Strait maritime hub and Wei legitimation bronze mirror redistribution port for northern Kyushu
- Abandoned
- c.300 CE towards Kofun provincial office at Iki kokufu
- Rediscovered
- 1996 expressway survey exposes 47 Han mirrors; 1998–2000 Harunotsuji confirms Ikikoku extent
- Excavation
- Partially excavated
c.300–100 BCE
Early trading base with Changsha swords and shell ornaments
c.100 BCE–239 CE
Wei Zhi Ikikoku peak: 2 km moat, 400 m plaza, 47 Han mirrors in situ
1996–2000
47 Han Wei mirrors — largest single Yayoi mirror hoard — prove Ikikoku as Himiko gateway
On the ground
Structures & features
33.7500° N · 129.7200° E · 25 m · 2 mapped features
Outer 2 km Moat and Twin Warehouse Row (100 ha)
fortification2000 m outer ditch with inner moat 800 m and twin warehouse rows 30 m on plaza 400×50 m
33.7505° N · 129.7205° ECentral Plaza and Han Mirror Hall (47 mirrors)
structure400×50 m central plaza with 18×12 m hall and pit where 47 Han bronze mirrors lay stacked
33.7495° N · 129.7195° E