A rice field buried by water

History and context

Toro preserves dwellings, storehouses and extensive rice fields from late Yayoi. Hoes, spades and other wooden implements show that agricultural expansion depended on specialised carpentry and stone or iron edges to make tools.

The site was crucial for postwar Japanese archaeology because it allowed the reconstruction of a whole village, not just isolated objects. The present-day houses are models based on excavated traces and must be presented as revisable hypotheses.

At Toro, water covered and sealed wood that rotted at other sites: hoes, spades and architectural elements returned the invisible technology of the rice fields. An iron edge could make many wooden tools without itself becoming the most numerous object.

The discovery during industrial works in 1943 and the large postwar excavations made Toro a symbol of village archaeology. The reconstructed houses express the knowledge of each campaign and can be revised.

Evidence and interpretation

Documented fact: the city of Shizuoka records dwellings, storehouses, rice fields and objects that allow the study of Yayoi life; Toro is a Special Historic Site. Interpretation and caution: exact roof form, simultaneous occupation and organisation of each household are reconstructed from partial evidence. Expanded documentation: The city of Shizuoka documents rice fields, dwellings, storehouses, wood and the history of excavation and reconstruction. Expanded interpretation and caution: Roofs, walls and domestic scenes were not preserved completely; distinguish evidence of footprint from restoration.

Catalogue facts

Narrative date

Centuries I–II CE

Location

Toro, Shizuoka, Honshu

Material

Wood, earth, rice, ceramics, stone and iron

Context

Agricultural village and flooded fields of late Yayoi

Curatorial reading

The documented fact and its interpretation appear separately in the evidence block.

Discovery

The site attracted attention in 1943 during works for a factory linked to the war effort.

Conservation

Wet sediments preserved wooden tools normally lost.

Public archaeology

Postwar excavations helped popularise a history centred on villages and farmers.

Documentary coverage

2 museum, heritage, primary corpus or research sources for this stop.

A closer look

About 1 min to read · 1 section. Further reading and sources · free access. Editorial review recorded: September 5, 2026.

Sources and references

• Shizuoka City · Prehistory and the Toro Site
• Shizuoka City · Special Historic Site Toro

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