Located in Asuka Historical Park, this is the largest square burial mound in Japan. It is a valuable burial mound from the late Kofun period and is designated as a Special Historic Site of Japan.
Although the burial site is unknown, it is believed to be the tomb of Soga Umako, a minister of the Asuka period.
The tomb mound is generally rectangular in shape, surrounded by a 5.9-8.4 meter wide moat and a 7.0 meter wide outer bank.
The mound has a unique shape, with the fill of the mound lost and a stone chamber made of a huge rock exposed in the center of the square mound.
The chamber is a magnificent 7.7 meters long, 3.5 meters wide, and 4.7 meters high, with more than 30 pieces of 70-ton class granite piled up, with an estimated total weight of 2,300 tons.
It is called “Ishibutai” (stone stage) because the top of the ceiling seats is wide and flat, giving it the appearance of a stage.
Legend has it that on moonlit nights, a fox disguised as a beautiful woman dances on it.
The interior of the stone chamber is open to the public, and the public is welcome to enter the chamber.
Earthenware, Sue ware, and copper metal fittings were found in the tomb, and Sung coins and Kan’ei Treasures from a later period were also excavated.
The tomb of Soga Umako, a powerful man in the early 7th century and grandfather of Soga Iruka, is located in the center of the Ishibutai area in Asuka National Historical Park.
The Ishibutai and the surrounding parkway are lit up during the cherry blossom season, creating a fantastic Asuka at night that cannot be experienced during the daytime.
9:00-17:00
Open all year round
General admission 300 yen
High school to elementary school students: 100 yen
23 min. by bus from Kintetsu Sakurai Stn. bound for Okadera-mae, 3 min. walk from Ishibutai stop.
25 minute walk from Asuka Station on the Kintetsu Yoshino Line.