Archaeologists have discovered a clay figure at Nishikaminomiya, northwest of Tokyo. Found at a fifth-century burial mound, it appears to represent a female religious leader who guarded a tomb. Experts identified the figure as a priestess partly because of the knot-shaped hairstyle on top of her head.
The surviving head and upper body measure about 40 centimetres in height, although the complete figure would have been considerably taller. It was found in a ditch surrounding a burial mound about 45 metres across. Archaeologists believe it originally stood near a boat-shaped coffin inside the mound before gradually slipping downhill into the ditch.
The figure has clay bracelets decorated with red colour on both wrists. Other features include carefully shaped fingers, a prominent nose and a red band painted across the upper body. In its left hand, it holds a rod-shaped object used in religious ceremonies. Government representatives noted the care given even to details that people could not have seen from far away.
Such priestesses connected the human and spiritual worlds in Japan's Shinto religion. During this historical period, they performed funeral ceremonies and provided spiritual guidance. Archaeologists have worked at Nishikaminomiya since 2020, and the figure is now on display at the archaeological research centre's museum in Shibukawa, Gunma.
