Tsunoshima island is known for its beautiful bridge connecting the island and the mainland. Several TV commercials have been shot on the bridge. We crossed the bridge and pulled off at the opposite end of the bridge. There was a monument and its description surprised me, which was written about the recent archeological research on ancient physical distribution.
According to the description, 1843 pieces of mokkann wooden plates along with lots of earthenwares were discovered from the former sites of Heijo-kyo in fall 1963. "Mokkann" is a narrow strip of wood on which an official message is written and used in the Nara period(710-784). Heijo-kyo was located in present Nara city and it was the capital of Japan at that time. Seven Ten-nohs (the 43th to the 49th) reigned there. By the way, one of the mokkanns was an invoice attached to the cargos which were sent from this island to the imperial palace. It had the sender's name and the shipping date of Mar. 29th in 746 (converted to the western calendar). The material was wakame seaweed (Undaria). That is to say, people on this island had paid wakame seaweed as the tax 1200 years ago. The noble people in the palace would love the seaweed from this island. This historical fact would be an honor for the inhabitants.
(Vocabulary)
physical distribution 物流
earthenware 陶器、土器
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