Experience Jōmon life
The Jōmon Era is the Neolithic civilization that lived in different parts of what we know as Japan today. Their livelihood largely depended on where they lived and what their surroundings were. The Tokamachi City Museum in Niigata, Japan offers a tour of Jōmon life, where you can learn and experience as the Jōmon people did in early Niigata. Permanent exhibits at this museum include Jōmon flame-style pottery, textile history, and life during the snowy seasons. There’s even a life-size replica of the interior of a Jōmon house during the winter seasons.
Most of the flame-style pottery was discovered at a site called the Sasayama Ruins, an archaeological site of the Jōmon period, where you will head to next following the museum. The plot of land was originally being developed for baseball fields when an excavator “accidentally” discovered pieces of flame-style pots. Now the site maintains and tries to recreate the pots using pieces found all over Japan or recreate them themselves. Two Jōmon style huts are also at this site and are well-maintained by the groundskeepers.
Besides pottery, the program also offers activities like a gathering and hunting experience. The diet of the Jōmon people depended on what they could get during the seasons. They primarily hunted wild boar and deer since they travel in large herds and gathered edible plants near their settlements. Just as the Jōmon people hunted for their food, you’ll get to do the same. Well, not exactly the same but you’ll still get to shoot some arrows at some adorable wooden cut-outs of animals found in the woods. However, to get to the archery experience, there is a short hike in the woods. Since Niigata rains most days of the year, wearing rainboots or hiking shoes would be best for this part of the tour.
The dining experience is probably the most unique activity of this tour and our favorite. Back at the main stage at the Sasayama Ruins, dinner is prepared in one of the Jōmon huts using flame-style pottery. Fun fact: fire actually helps maintain the huts by eliminating moisture and keeping away bugs. You’ll get your own grill and a hefty serving of wild boar and vegetables. Yep, you heard me, you’ll get to try wild boar, which surprisingly was more tender than other unusual meats we’ve had.
Rounding off the Jōmon experience is the Niigata Prefectural Museum of History. Here, you can extensively learn about the Jōmon people through the seasons including hunting patterns, and the roles of men and women. A unique experience you can also do at this museum is making soapstone jewelry. No one knows the reason or purpose of the soapstone jewelry, just that it was around since the Jōmon era.
This tour is great for anyone who is interested in history and enjoys hands-on experiences. As mentioned before, Niigata rains most of the days out of the year so make sure to pack a pair of rain boots, a raincoat, and an umbrella just in case.