Yasashiyato Site

Overview

The Yasashiyato Site is a composite archaeological site from the Paleolithic and Jomon periods, located in Yasashi-cho, Asahi Ward, Yokohama. In a single place, traces of the distant Paleolithic era overlap with those of the later Jomon era, telling of a land where people lived and returned again and again over a very long span of time. There are no grand structures here, but it is a place to touch the ancient memory sleeping beneath the modern city of Yokohama.

Highlights

• ●A composite site in Asahi Ward, Yokohama, spanning the Paleolithic and Jomon periods
• ●The history of a land where people lived and returned again and again
• ●Ancient memory sleeping in the hills of western Yokohama, beneath the city
• ●Imagining the lives of people long ago from the shape of the valley

History

The Yasashiyato Site is a composite site spanning the Paleolithic and Jomon periods. The Paleolithic represents some of the earliest human life on the Japanese archipelago, while the Jomon period that followed saw the spread of pottery-making and more settled ways of living. Finding traces of life from these different eras in the same place suggests that this valley was an environment easy to gather water and food, and thus one where people naturally congregated over a long time.

Map

35.4773, 139.5038 · Wikidata

Suggested itinerary

1. 1Head toward the Yasashi-cho area of Asahi Ward, Yokohama, and locate the hillside where the site lies
2. 2Walk while checking on-site signage and viewable areas against official information
3. 3Follow the valley terrain and reflect on Paleolithic and Jomon ways of life
4. 4Round out a peaceful day in western Yokohama alongside the nearby green spaces and Asahi Ward streets

Did you know?

💡 The term composite site refers to a single site where traces of multiple eras overlap. At the Yasashiyato Site, remains of life from the Paleolithic and Jomon periods, separated by tens of thousands of years, lie in the same ground, and the very name conveys that this is a place where layers of time have accumulated.

Nearby spots