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2015 paper concludes that migrants from Northeast China via Korea bearing the...
Fig. 2 a Map showing the distribution of the two major JCV genotypes (CY and MY) in Japan. The areas in which CY and MY were found more frequently (i.e., at rates >75 %) are indicated as CY-rich or...
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Ancient Japan may have been ‘more cosmopolitan’ than thought: researchers
Physics.org, Oct 5, 2016 Ancient Japan may have been far more cosmopolitan than previously thought, archaeologists said Wednesday, pointing to fresh evidence of a Persian official working in the...
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Hoabinhian sites in Asia and relict DNA
The oldest Hoabinhian site has recently been discovered in Yunnan, China. What implications does this have for the peopling of East Asia? It has been loosely pointed out that Hoabinhian artefacts have...
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The people and stories behind Meiji Era’s (1867-1926) architecture
Facade of the State Guest House (Akasaka Palace). Built in 1909, it is one of the biggest buildings constructed during the Meiji period. Photo: Heritage of Japan Behind every building there is a...
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Facial tattoos of the Jomon, and what they may have been for
Below are a few sample closeup photos of tattooed faces of the Jomon mostly of clay figurines (called dogu) or of pottery relief: Relief face in a clay pot from Yamanashi prefecture(Minami-Alps city)...
View ArticleThe Exact Opposite Idea of the Pirate Cliché
An thoughtful piece about why the Murakami pirates were so successful, their innovations, and how they turned islands into vibrant local trading economies… via The Exact Opposite Idea of the Pirate...
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The Exact Opposite Idea of the Pirate Cliché
A thoughtful piece from the Pirates of Asia blog that lends insights to why the Murakami pirates were such a force to be reckoned, their innovations and how they contributed to the flourishing local...
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Mori Motonari, the smartest sea lord in Japan
The Island of Miyajima is better promoted and known for its serene scenic beauty, but it is historically significant for one of the most dramatic battle scenes of the Sengoku era, the Battle of...
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A map of Japan made during the Italian Renaissance
In 1587, Italian cartographer Urbano Monte created a world map with a unique perspective centred in the North Pole. This map is from one of the 60 pages of that work. Monte’s knowledge of Japan was...
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A walk on Mt. Mitake brings encounters with wolf and mountain lore
Musashi-Mitake-jinja The Musashi-Mitake-jinja Shrine is believed to have been founded in 90 BC by Emperor Sujin, which makes it one of the oldest in Japan. However, the shrine also records that Priest...
View ArticleALDH2 and migration patterns into Japan
Hu Li et al.,2009, Refined Geographic Distribution of the Oriental ALDH2*504Lys (nee 487Lys) Variant Summary Mitochondrial aldehyde dehydrogenase (ALDH2) is one of the most important enzymes in human...
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It’s time to embrace northern route dispersal scenarios for the migration of...
Source: Ancient Eurasian DNA sequencing is revealing links with modern humans Many voices and new models disproving the Southern Dispersal route model (following the coast of India) have been steadily...
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Large scale whole genome sequencing 2020 study elucidates the genetic and...
Fig. 1: High-resolution spectra of mtDNA haplogroups in the Japanese population. From: Genetic and phenotypic landscape of the mitochondrial genome in the Japanese population (Open Access pub. under...
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A treasure trove of 103 ‘lost’ drawings by Hokusai emerges in the Piasa...
Preparatory drawing (hanshita-e) for an illustrated book, mounted on card. Sea monster assailing a ship. Ink on paper.© The Trustees of the British Museum Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0...
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A study of maize weevils from ancient Jomon pottery shows they stored acorns...
Image of a maize weevil impression from the surface of a pottery fragment.CREDIT: Prof. Hiroki Obata Researchers from Kumamoto University have studied nationwide maize weevil impressions from 10,000...
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During which season did the Jomon people gather and eat shellfish?
An exhibit featured this week at Tama Center’s Jomon Village Archaeological Center reveals that the Jomon people collected shellfish mostly during the spring to summer seasons. Exhibit at Tama Center’s...
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Maedakochi site: Jomon village life during the Incipient Jomon Period
Maedakochi site and the recreated landscape of Tama Hills during the Incipient Jomon Period (Photo: Heritage of Japan) First things first… Announcement! We are slowly (it will be a laborious work in...
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Migrants arrive to form the Okhotsk culture in northern Hokkaido, bringing a...
Here, I’d like to highlight data from two papers about the prehistoric dispersal routes of barley from Eurasia into Hokkaido. From the first, Lister 2018, I draw our attention to the proposed routes...
View ArticleTomb secrets yet to be unlocked from 1,600 years ago
Click here to see video https://www.bbc.com/reel/embed/p07lq60x Key-hole shaped tombs in Japan. Video by Matt DworzańczykImage courtesy of Sakai City Government and Sakai City Museum...
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