Photo By Sgt. Brennan Priest | A contractor with the Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education, Archaeological Center,...... read more read more
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Two-thousand five-hundred years ago, Okinawa, Japan, was in the middle of the Jomon Jidai period. A hunter-gatherer culture known for being one of the oldest periods to use chord to imprint texture into the wet clay of pottery. This pottery was known as “Chord-marked,” later being translated to Japanese as “Jomon.” Six-hundred years ago, the Gusuku period was thriving. A period named for castles on the Ryukyu Islands defined by their stone walls. Okinawa’s history is rich and diverse, providing archeologists opportunities to research and understand the culture.
The excavation that the Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education, Archaeological Center is conducting on Marine Corps Air Station Futenma is integral to the recording and mapping of historical locations around the Island. This provides locational awareness for both the Marine Corps and the Okinawa Government.
“We are currently excavating almost 600 sites across Okinawa,” said Tsutomu Arakaki, an excavation specialist and site supervisor with the Okinawa Prefectural Archaeological Center. “Regardless if the sites are on or off the base, our job is to find any ruins or artifacts. If there are, we learn the scale of the ruins and what they contain. We survey and get as much information as possible to use in the future for research or to prevent finding and destroying a ruin accidentally during construction.”
The OPAC works in partnership with the Marine Corps Installations Pacific Environmental Affairs Branch. This partnership allows for the smooth discovery, collection and storage of artifacts for future reference and study.
“Our office works as a liaison with the local board of education to get permits for archaeological excavations here on site” said Paul French, an archaeologist and cultural resource manager with Environment Affairs. “From an archaeological standpoint it is always important to know a people’s history. You never know if what you find could be significant, especially to Okinawa.”
It is important that both the Marine Corps and the Okinawa Government understand how to preserve artifacts and historical locations.
“Whenever we have a ground disturbing activity or something that requires cultural compliance, we partner with the Government of Japan,” said French. “They look at the work we do and consult on our findings. It’s always important to have that input and interaction so we can understand their interests and concerns. Projects like this it helps us keep in contact with one another and stay on the same page to protect the resources that we have.”
A team of three archaeologists and 17 contractors has been working since September 2019 and is scheduled to continue to until February 2020. The excavations began with dense forest clearing before they could access the area. Once excavation began, artifacts from three different periods were found.
“We found several pieces of pottery in the past two weeks and took them to the lab for testing,” said Arakaki. “After we record what the site contains we will fill the area back in and use that information in the future.”
The pottery is believed to be 600 years old, along with the 2,500 year old building remains. The archaeologists also have found evidence that the excavation site was home to farmers before World War II. Currently the area is being surveyed and the garden, farms and irrigation channels are being recorded.
“There are a variety of archaeological interests here,” said French. “This is the first step into survey, excavation and trying to learn the significance of the sight.”
The site on MCAS Futenma is an example of the rich history of Okinawa. It holds artifacts from three different periods of history in one location.
The partnership between the United States and Japan to preserve Okinawa’s history and culture is important, signifying the friendship the two nations have.
| Date Taken: | 11.25.2019 |
| Date Posted: | 12.16.2019 02:38 |
| Story ID: | 353468 |
| Location: | MARINE CORPS AIR STATION FUTENMA, OKINAWA, JP |
| Web Views: | 258 |
| Downloads: | 0 |
This work, Digging for the past: American and Japanese archaeologists partner to excavate Futenma dig site, by Sgt Brennan Priest, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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