Jomon Pottery

Not many inventions have changed the course of history and redirected human beings upon a new path. Many of these inventions are ancient and hardly noteworthy at first investigation. Such hushed but creative breakthroughs of the human mind are in direct contrast to the marching of warlike kingdoms that often dominate our historical time line. The invention of pottery is one of those life altering changes. The art of making objects from fire hardened clay created a shift in culture after which history would never be the same.

Fire hardened Jomon Pottery containers that don’t leak unless cracked, and more often than not, last a very long time. The evolution of diet and cooking could be speculated upon by the discovery of  when pottery was first available. New ideas of food preservation and storage, cooking baking, boiling, and brewing made way for  a large diversity in food preparation. Pottery evolved nit only in a practical use but also in an artistic medium, upon which either daily records or sacred symbols could be recorded. Also  fire hardened vessels would bring the clan closer to village life because pottery objects are fragile and cannot easily integrate in large numbers with a nomadic  hunter-gatherer type life style.

Jomon Pottery – Earliest Culture and Lifestyles

The invention of pottery first occurred here in Japan, in an ancient culture known as the Jomon. The Jomon Period occupies a long span of Japanese history from 14,000 B.C. to 400 B.C. Land bridges were present with the Asian mainland until c.12,.000 B.C. Jomon ancestors walked slowly to Japan from East Asia, hunting and fishing every day as their nomadic culture had done for thousands of years.

‘Jomon’ means ‘cord patterned’, or ‘cord impressed’. Jomon potters decorated their clay vessels by marking/pressing into clay with sticks wrapped with cords. The Jomon culture was hunter gatherers.  Their tribal/clan culture is as expected for their location and time in Japan. However, with a closer look we find extraordinary inventiveness. Jomon artistic talent was also exceptional and later Jomon potters produced magnificent vessels with a sophisticated refined design such as the beautiful vase that is the lead image for this post.

The Jomon Pottery was made with chipped and ground stone tools, traps, bows and arrows, and were skilled coastal and offshore fishermen.  Axes with polished stone edges, stone drills, arrow heads and arrow shaft smoothers can be identified. The axes were not weapons; they were used to dig up edible tubers and roots from the forest floor.

Hunting was a primary activity, with Shika deer taken in winter and wild boar hunted throughout the year. Widely deployed pit traps and, later, hunting dogs were used to hunt a great diversity of animals. Earliest Jomon often lived in caves and were semi-nomadic. The earliest shelters that the Jomon constructed were small pit houses which appear in their second period – Early Jomon, 8000- 5,000 B.C. They are no more than 5’ in diameter with a thatched roof supported by wooden posts. 

There are over 80 Jomon archeological sites in Japan and most of the Jomon pottery comes from later Jomon periods. Earliest Jomon cultural phases are unremarkable except for this one extraordinary development. The first Jomon were typical early Mesolithic hunter gatherers, efficiently exploiting the many resources in their local environment – a fine illustration of sustainability. Early in their history, they invented fire hardened pottery and the world would never be the same afterward as the technology spread across the planet. When the Jomon archeological record finally disappears, a new culture has arrived from East Asia, bringing with it a new agriculture and innovative technologies. The Jomon people, of course remained.

This is a fascinating subject for me and I became interested in the Jomon culture upon first setting eyes on the modern day spaceman figure made from Jomon pottery. What had they seen to inspire a figure such as that. It leaves us with many unanswered questions.

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Cherry Blossom Blooms

Spring in Hokkaido

Furano Mountains

Spring is here, temperatures are no longer in the freezing range, even at night and everything is starting to come to life.  Spring in Hokkaido is amazing with the cherry blossoms blooming and the weather is cool and sunny.  We just came off of the golden week holidays, and took a drive to the nearby town of Furano to visit one of my students (actually say goodbye).  She will be leaving next week for a one year stay along the Gold Coast of Australia.  She is doing this for two purposes, one for the adventure and two for the chance to improve here English speaking ability.  Good Luck Nana you will be missed.

Nana’s parents have a cafe located next to the Anpan Man shop in Furano, Anpan man is a famous cartoon character in Japan.  We took our children to the Anpan Shop and ate lunch at the Onigiri Slow Life Cafe.  We were lucky and were treated to Free soft serve ice cream from Nana’s cafe. Thanks and it was delicious. My kids were especially happy!

After the visit to the cafe and lunch we took a trip to the Furano Cheese and Pizza factory.  We got to try samples of the cheese they made there from fresh Hokkaido milk.  The cheese was similar to brie, and was soft with a light rhind.  There was even squid ink cheese which I braved and tried…. Not to bad, tasted like regular cheese, but had a black coating on it.  I don’t know about you but black is a color that is just not that appetizing to look at.

My Boys

After visiting the cheese factory we tried some of the freshly made soft serve and all add a double scoop of Cheese flavor and Grape.  The Cheese flavor scoop was the best I ever tasted, it was like cheesecake flavored ice cream Yummmmm!  The grape was also delicious.  After the visit to the cheese factory we headed back home.

The next day we took another road trip, this time we headed for a 2 hour drive to a nearby town called Sunagawa. There is a huge park for children that we wanted to take the kids to.  After arriving we learned that just the adults had to pay to get in.  Thanks for telling us in advance, of course know one is going to turn around and head back home, so we forked out the $5 each to get in.

Inside the park was a giant 5 story pyramid with rope swings, trampolines, slides that came down 3 stories and many other attractions.  The kids had a great time racing around chasing each other and trying out all of the attractions in the pyramid. Next it was outside to see a re-creation of the leaning tower of Pisa, and Stonehenge.  Spring in Hokkaido weather was just perfect for the visit.

There were giant mazes, large hills to roll down, obstacle courses, park golf (similar to putt putt). and many other fun things to do for the children. All of this set on a hill overlooking the town down below.  We all had a great time, and I was wore out after all of the walking and stair climbing that we did.

Anpan Man Shop

After the park we headed for a KaiTen sushi restaurant back in Asahikawa were we ate dinner. Kaiten Sushi is the type of restaurant where the sushi is on small saucers that travel around the restaurant on a conveyor belt, and when you see something you like, you grab it.  You are charged by the number of saucers that you have on your table when you are finished.

Furano Cheese Factory

After the restaurant we headed home for a well deserved rest.  Spring in Hokkaido is just amazing, the tourists are in abundance and you kind of feel proud to know that they are here only for a visit but, I get to enjoy it 24/7 365 days a year.  I cannot say it enough, I am so lucky and thankful to the universe to have the opportunity to live in paradise.

I have found my home, and will remain here until my spirit decides this shell it lives in is no longer habitable. Take Care my friends, and come visit.

Missing Australian Man Found

About 2 months ago I posted a story here on On The Path about an Australian man who had went missing in Niseko after leaving a bar and heading back to his lodge a short distance away.  As promised, here is an update to the story with some sad results.

A jogger has found the body of Australian Scott McKay near areas scoured by rescuers when he went missing in a blizzard in Japan two months ago.

 Police on the island of Hokkaido have confirmed the discovery of the 27-year-old Brisbane man’s body in a river just a few hundred metres past the lodge where he had been staying.

 Mr McKay was last seen leaving a resort bar in the small village of Niseko in the early hours of February 20.  His two mates left the bar about 15 minutes later, but when they arrived at their accommodation, Mr McKay was not there. 

Speaking on behalf of local police, Niseko safety liaison officer Derek Bagel said the body, found on Wednesday, had been dressed in the same clothes Mr McKay was wearing when he was last seen.

 Mr McKay’s remains have been taken to Hokkaido University for formal identification.

 Mr Bagel said crews who searched for the missing Australian had come very close to the spot where his body was eventually found.  “The river he was found in is very close to areas that were checked repeatedly, including by police divers and volunteer searchers,” he said.

 But Mr Bagel said the terrain was extremely challenging.  “It’s twisty, tangled and difficult with four to five switchbacks in a 10 to 15 metre area with lots of trees - a creek really, maybe knee to thigh deep at the moment and perhaps one metre across,” he said.

 “With the snow melt and the increase in river volume, his body must have finally become more visible.”  Hypothermia can cause disorientation.  Heavy snow, below-zero temperatures and gale-force winds initially hampered the search for the IT business owner.

 Sniffer dogs, helicopters, friends and family all failed to locate Mr McKay’s body in the following weeks.

Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family of Mr McKay’.  I want to thank Snowman at Asahikawa English Conversation School for giving me the link to this story.