Zenpōkōenfun
Zenpokoenfun is an architectural model of Japanese ancient tombs, which consists of a square front part and a circular back part. The part connecting the two is called the middle part, which looks like a keyhole when viewed from above. Therefore, they are also called keyhole-shaped mounds in English, and in Korean, they are called long drum tombs due to their resemblance to Janggu, and it is also a form of the Kofun that appeared earlier in the Kofun period along with the ''. Generally, large Kofun are front and rear circular tombs, widely distributed in Honshu, Shikoku, and Kyushu with Gokishichidō as the center. Among them, the largest front and rear circular tomb in Japan are the Mozu Tombs with a total length of 525 meters. In addition to Japan, there are also the front and rear circular tombs in South Korea, as well as the front and rear circular tombs in Chosan County Ancient Tomb Group and Chasong County Ancient Tomb Group located in North Korea. In addition, Korean archaeologist Jiang Renqiu believes that the Songhe Dong No. 1 Tomb located in Goseong County, South Gyeongsang Ancient Tomb Group, is the Zenpokoenfun.
Etymology
At first, Zenpokoenfun did not have a specific name, but were named after objects that were around the people during that era. Therefore, they were also known as Chezun, Yaozi, Chajiu, Calabash, Piaozhong, and Erzi Tombs. Chezun refers to the front and back circular parts of Kofun, which are named after cars. Yaozi Tomb is named after the fact that when viewed from the side, it looks like half of the lying Yaozi, Chajiu Tomb is named after the two or three layers of the back circle that look like a teacup and is also known as the teacup tomb and the cup-shaped tomb. The cup-shaped tomb, refers to the shape of the front and back circular tombs, which is like half of a gourd buried in the soil. Erzi Tomb, also known as the Erzi Tomb and Gemini Tomb, refers to the front and back circular tombs with similar heights between the front and back parts. Most of the front and rear circular tombs referred to as this are concentrated in the Kantō region.The term "Zenpokoenfun" can be found in the "Annals of the Mountains" written by Pusheng Junping in the 5th year of the Bunka, which recorded: "Just like a palace carriage, the front and rear circular tombs are three stories high and surrounded by Moat". Zenpokoenfun are considered as palace carriages, and the rear circular parts are compared to car covers, while the front part is a shaft. In addition, Toshihara Yoichi, the director researcher of the Nara Prefectural Tsuwara Archaeology Institute, believes that the circular part is the part where the bullock cart, and the front part is the part where the ox cart pulls. Yoichi Tsuwara, the director of the Tsuwara Burial Cultural Center in Nara Prefectural, sees the palace cart as a bronze chariot or a hearse. Starting from the late Meiji era, Zenpokoenfun continued to be used as an academic term.
Origin
There are multiple theories regarding the origin of Zenpokoenfun. Firstly, the term "imitation of objects" was used. In addition to the "palace chariot" term, which was no longer adopted during the Meiji era, Masahiko Shimada and Daiichi Harada believed that they had imitated the wide-mouthed earthenware pot, with the back circular part being the pot and the front part being the wide spout. In addition, there is Hamada Farming who proposed the shield theory. Both were criticized by Sen Haoyi, who believed that the wide-mouthed earthenware had a far different shape from the early Zenpokoenfun. In fact, the shield unearthed from the early Kofun had a weak circular arc above it and a straight line below it, which was also different from the shape of the front and back circular tombs. Moreover, since the shield was flat, it could not explain the reason for the arch of the back circular part. Hamada later withdrew this statement on his own. In addition, the original Koushu people also proposed the idea of imitating the family house, believing that the tomb as the post-death residence was a common concept in different cultures, and compared the Xuan room to the main part, reproducing the appearance of the pre-life residence through envy and vice rooms. Maomu Yabo thinks that is inappropriate to suggest that Zenpokoenfun was based on the imitation of objects, and Tsumatsu Mingjiu also believes that there are many similar objects to Zenpokoenfun, which is just a theory.Secondly, there is the theory of the front part of the altar. William Gowland believed as early as 1897 that the front part was an altar, because the tomb chambers of Zenpokoenfun were all in the back circular part, while the front part was not, and fragments of ritual objects were occasionally unearthed on the surface of the front part. and Rokuji Morimoto also agree with this statement and believe that the central details of the house-shaped disc wheel unearthed are reminiscent of ancestral halls. Kita Sadakichi believes that the front part is the place where the coin bearer is used to declare his destiny above it, and Hamada Farming also mentioned this, pointing out that during the Edo period, some people had already named the front part the declaration field, reflecting the function of the altar. Yukio Kobayashi also believes that the front part is closer to the altar. On the other hand, in support of this statement, Saiichi Goto also mentioned that due to the lack of ritual objects such as earthenware and Sakurai in the front section, this viewpoint cannot be confirmed. At the same time, Takahashi Kenji believed that the front part also had accompanying burial situations and should not be regarded as an altar. He also advocated that the front part and the circular part, like the sanctuary between the main hall of a Shinto shrine and the birdhouse, should display this deep structure to bring a sense of solemnity. Therefore, the front part should be regarded as a Torii. The most powerful statement to date is that the front section was referred to as the altar in a book written by Akira Chongmatsu in 1978.
The third theory is about the origin of the mainland. In 1926, Rokuji Morimoto proposed that Zenpokoenfun were modeled after tombs in mainland China. Nishijima Tsuyoshi advocated that Himiko was crowned as Cao Rui by Emperor Ming of Wei in the 39th year of Empress Jingū reign. As a result, it was necessary to build a tomb that met his identity, with the surrounding area coming from the circular mound sacrifice to Heaven and the square mound dedicated to the earth. At the same time, Emperor Wu of Wei was also dedicated to the circular mound, while Empress Dowager Bian was dedicated to the square mound. The situation of Zenpokoenfun is that Okimi and the gods and earth are only worshipped together. Therefore, the construction of the Zenpokoenfun not only demonstrated authority both inside and outside but also made up for the lack of sacrificial functions of the Yamato Kingship, such as circular mounds, square mounds, ancestral temples, etc. Later, it evolved into the creation and construction of Jongmyo around the mounds as altars. Yukio Yamato also mentioned that during the 66th year of the Regency of Empress Jingū's reign, when he sent envoys to pay tribute to the Western Jin Dynasty, during the winter solstice of the same year, he went to the front and back circular two layer altar built at Weisu Mountain to observe the ceremony of Emperor Wu of Jin worshipping his father, Emperor Wen of Jin, grandfather, Emperor Gaozu of Jin, and Wufang Shangdi. At the time of the Western Jin Dynasty, the suburban worship was held by the emperor alone on a square and circular mixed altar built naturally according to the hilly terrain, offering sacrifices to the heavens and ancestors. It was pointed out that after the envoy returned to Japan, the front circular tomb suddenly appeared in the middle of the 3rd century. In addition, Yoshihiro Hanoi cited the concept of "using crushed stones to cover each body thinly" in the "Longsha Chronicles" written by Shiji, and referred to it as the "human-shaped crushed stone tomb", pointing out that it was similar to the Zenpokoenfun. He also mentioned that they are the result of the maximization based on their prototype, which is a creative product of ancient people. Fujisawa, on the other hand, pointed out that Zenpokoenfun originated from the Dahuting Han Tomb. In the early stage, most of them were vertical cave-style stone chambers, which were influenced by Korea. Higuchi Takahiko believed that they originated from the Mawangdui Han Tomb, and Tsuyoshi Shimamatsu criticized his claim, pointing out that they were closer to the double tombs in Silla and, if they were closer, more like the Noin-Ula burial site. At the same time, Mihara Moji and Suzuki both believed that the front and rear circular tombs were related to the Noin-Ula burial site. And it is advocated that Zenpokoenfun are derived from the Tianyuan place of Taoism, built on the basis of Han tombs such as Dahuting.
The fourth is related to the period of the Yai Sheng era, where Jin Guanshu believed that the Zenpokoenfun was originally a sacrificial site during the Yayoi period. Kondo Yoshiro proposed that Zenpokoenfun originated from the Yoshiyama Tomb, with the front part being the protruding part of the four corner protruding tomb mound. Afterwards, Zenpokoenfun spread throughout Japan, forming the order of Zenpokoenfun. The Yoshiyama Burial Culture Center stated that Zenpokoenfun originated from the Yoshiyama Tomb, and pointed out that Kofun at that time were surrounded by Zhou trenches, leaving only one connection between land and Kofun, known as the land bridge, and that earthenware for ceremonies was found near it, and the land bridge gradually expanded to form Zenpokoenfun, which is currently a powerful statement. On May 12, 2016, the Nara Institute of Culture and Finance discovered a circular tomb at the Seta Ruins in Kashihara, Nara Prefecture. It was pointed out that the Zenpokoenfun evolved from this tomb into a tombstone after winding towards the tombstone. Hiroshi Ishino believes that this circular tomb can be one of the origins of the Zenpokoenfun.
In addition, there is a theory of combining two tombs. In 1906, Kenji Kiyono proposed that Zenpokoenfun were developed separately from the main tomb and the accompanying tomb, and ultimately merged into one. Neil Gordon Monroe believed that Japanese people like triangles and created Zenpokoenfun by combining them. In addition, Mihara Moji also inherited William Gowland's statement that Zenpokoenfun was formed by combining circular and square graves. Saito Tadao and Hamada Genshin proposed the idea that the front and rear circular graves were naturally formed based on the terrain of the hills. Hamada later withdrew this claim, and Masaki Yabo also believed that both this and Neil Gordon Menruo's claims lacked persuasiveness. He also said that the claims of Seino and Mihara were difficult to verify, but only inherited the theory of the time.