Kodera Site

Overview

The Kodera Site lies in Minamiedo-cho, Matsuyama City, Ehime Prefecture, an archaeological site of the Kofun period. Here, a water-intake weir built by reusing discarded construction timber was uncovered, showing how ancient people skillfully managed water. Though no grand monuments remain, it is valued as a rare excavation that speaks of the bond between daily life and water, a fitting stop for a journey into Matsuyama's deeper history.

Highlights

• ●An ancient intake weir built from reused construction timber
• ●An excavation that speaks of Kofun-period water engineering
• ●A rare site conveying an era of few written records in physical form
• ●A history spot easy to reach from central Matsuyama

History

In the Kofun period, the people who lived here built a weir as a water facility for farming. What stands out is that the weir incorporated reused construction timber. This ancient ingenuity, putting spent wood to work again without waste, offers a clue to the civil-engineering skills and the view of resources of the time. Revealed through excavation, the intake weir is like a record etched into the ground, telling in physical form of life in an era with few written sources.

Map

33.8361, 132.7423 · Wikidata

Suggested itinerary

1. 1Base yourself in Matsuyama and head to the Kodera Site in Minamiedo-cho
2. 2Encounter the history surrounding the ancient intake weir
3. 3Pair it with sights such as Matsuyama Castle and Dogo Onsen
4. 4Savor Matsuyama's path from antiquity to early modern times in a day

Did you know?

💡 The greatest point of interest at the Kodera Site is that its water-intake weir was built by reusing construction timber. The spirit of not letting things go to waste may sound like a modern idea, yet it is intriguing that people of the Kofun period, too, put wood back to use, as this site suggests.

Nearby spots