[Connected Travelogue #228] Learning about the Korokan that was buried in Fukuoka Castle [Ancient Toilets]

Last time, while the cherry blossoms were in full bloom and then falling, I learned about Fukuoka Castle's main keep accordingly.

And this time, I am going to see facilities related to Dazaifu.

So, this is the destination, the 'Korokan'.

Let's go inside right away.

Once inside, it was a spacious, single-floor exhibition facility.

It somehow reminds me a little of the Chiteinomori Museum (Sendai City Buried Cultural Properties Center).

This place also displays the site exactly as it was during the excavation.

By the way, as for what kind of facility the Korokan actually was, it was a 'reception and lodging facility for people from overseas'.

At the time, it was called Tsukushi-no-murotsumi, and it seems they welcomed envoys from Tang, Silla, and Balhae and had them stay here.

And it seems that these 'Korokan' facilities for overseas reception also existed in Naniwa-kyo in Osaka and Heian-kyo in Kyoto.

However, it is said that Fukuoka is the only place where the remains have been found like this.

(Fukuoka also initially ignored the discovery of the remains and built a baseball stadium, but it seems they were able to resume excavations after the team moved to the Fukuoka Dome.)

Also, the Korokan in Fukuoka seems to have been used as a lodging place for the Kentoshi (envoys to Tang China) departing from Hakata Port.

The people who boarded ships as Kentoshi were all the highest-level talent in Japan, and the loss to the country in the event of failure was tremendous.

But the success rate of such Kentoshi was a huge gamble of 7 out of 15 times. (8 times they were shipwrecked!)

With the navigation technology of the time, they had to risk the lives of precious talent on a success rate of less than 50%.

……No wonder Sugawara no Michizane proposed, 'Let's stop this'.

But it was precisely because the Kentoshi existed that Kukai was able to study Esoteric Buddhism and return, so it is quite a dilemma.

And I re-recognized that Ganjin, who came to Japan despite failing 5 times and losing his eyesight, was truly amazing.

What an incredible era...

Returning to the topic, such a Korokan was connected toDazaifuviaofficial roads.

There weretwoofficial roads, but it seems diplomatic envoys entered Dazaifu via a route passing through theMizuki West Gate. (The place I went to see in a past travelogue was where theMizuki East Gatewas located.)

The West Gate routeis probably about17 kmto the Dazaifu Government Office.

(It seems like it would be tough on foot.)

Such a Korokan has various excavated items likepotteryandPersian glass, but what piqued my interest was, surprisingly, thetoilet.

Toilets in the Nara period seem to have been simple affairs where onedug a square hole and laid boards across it, but the information researchers can obtain from them is wide-ranging.

For example, the soil in this toilet contained a significant amount ofparasite eggs, leading to the theory that Japanese people at the time were infected with parasites from eating undercooked fish anddrank melon seeds as a dewormer.

Even without going back to the Nara period, Japan was still doing things like "pinworm tests" until2015, but to think that such information could be obtained from the soil of an ancient toilet...

The perspective and analytical skills of researchersare amazing.

And another thing I found interesting was thechugi (spatula).

This is, so to speak,ancient toilet paper.

In an era when paper was precious, it is said that they used thisstickto scrape feces from their anus.

...I imagine they probably couldn't clean it off completely.

But well, maybe it was okay becauseeveryone was like that.

...

Modern times are truly the best!!

By the way, regarding these chugi (wiping sticks), 1,000 of themhave been found in this toilet.

And in the black soil (fecal layer), it has been determined that there are two layers containing melon seeds, which means it is thought that summer, when melons can be harvested, passed twice.

In short, this toilet was used for at least a year and a half.

Oh my...

(So, like... they didn't do regular emptying...?)

And regarding these chugi, there are stories that in quite rural areas they were commonly used until around the postwar period, so it seems this isn't something to be dismissed as just ancient culture.

Toilet paper that dissolves in water is actually a very recent invention.

For example, in the past, there would be a ropestretched across the toilet, and you would use that to wipe yourself clean...

If you look around the world, some used sand...

...

No, let's stop here.

Because I'm about to forget everything about the 'Korokan' stuff from the beginning due to all this talk about toilets.

(Though I do think it's an interesting field)

As for that Korokan, while its military significance grew over time through events like the Invasion of Silla and the Toi Invasion, it was arsoned in 1047 and disappeared from historical documents.

Well, the Dazaifu Government Office also seems to have been in ruins by the 12th century, so the Korokan was likely in ruins by that time as well.

Then, in the Sengoku period, Nagamasa Kuroda thought, "Hey, there's a big plot of land here!" and built Fukuoka Castle,

and as time passed, the Army began to use Fukuoka Castle.

After that, a baseball stadium was built, and then

it was excavated to become what it is today, so to speak.

Knowing that history, I am moved to be able to see these ruins.

Let's be grateful that the people of Fukuoka at the time chose to excavate them.

……Come to think of it, the Tale of Genji also mentions the "Korokan".

As for what kind of scene it is, it seems it's where 'a Goryeo person staying at the Korokan is asked to perform a physiognomy reading on the young Hikaru Genji'.

Of course, this Korokan is not the one in Fukuoka, but the Korokan of Kyoto/Heian-kyo.

I never expected Murasaki Shikibu to appear in the 2024 Taiga drama, but I'm looking forward to seeing how the Heian period, which is often said to not have been very peaceful at all, will be depicted.

With that said, I was able to fully enjoy the cherry blossoms and history at Maizuru Park and the Fukuoka Castle Ruins.

It was unfortunately raining, but I'm glad I decided to come sightseeing.

While hoping I can come back when it's sunny next time,

To be continued next time……!