WIDE-MOUTHED JAR, Earthenware, Yayoi Period（300BCE–250CE）

Yayoi pottery evolved as a “vessel of life,” embodying the stirrings of a new social structure founded on rice cultivation and settled living, inscribed into the humble medium of clay. Whereas the Jōmon period featured complex cord-mark patterns, the Yayoi period came to be characterized by simpler, more orderly designs such as comb-marked patterns, straight lines, and wave motifs. The vessels became thinner and took on shapes that combined refined aesthetics with practical functionality.

In early Yayoi settlements in northern Kyushu, iron axes and arrowheads have been excavated, believed to have arrived via the Korean Peninsula. These iron tools significantly advanced tree-felling and agricultural development. Meanwhile, pottery-making techniques also progressed. The coil-building method inherited from the Jōmon era continued, but vessel surfaces were smoothed with slip (deishō), and forms began to be organized according to specific uses. For instance, large jars and pots were developed for storage, spouted vessels for pouring water or broth, and tall-footed bowls (takatsuki) for food or ceremonial purposes. These vessels were closely intertwined with society, evolving into standardized shapes that mirrored social needs.

By the middle Yayoi period, the introduction of covered firing techniques enabled high-temperature firing at around 1000°C, allowing for the mass production of thin-walled, hard, reddish-brown pottery. Discoveries of iron arrowheads and spears along the shores of Lake Biwa and in the San'in region indicate a social structure in which agriculture and warfare coexisted. At the same time, pottery retaining Jōmon-style elements continued to be produced from northern Kyushu to eastern Japan, suggesting a cultural fusion between continental immigrants who brought agricultural practices and the local traditions of Jōmon potters.

In the late Yayoi period, domestic iron casting techniques became established, leading to the widespread production of swords, arrowheads, and axes found across various regions. Yayoi pottery maintained its thin-walled, reddish-brown form and, used alongside iron agricultural tools, secured its place as an indispensable implement for farming, storage, and cooking. Pottery grew beyond mere household utility to become a part of the social infrastructure, supporting communal order, rituals, and technological structures.

Additionally, this period saw the emergence of implements equivalent to chopsticks. Archaeological sites from the late Yayoi period have yielded “oribashi”—bamboo chopsticks folded in half to form a tweezer-like tool—believed to have initially served religious or ceremonial purposes. Although chopsticks for eating became widespread only from the Asuka period onward, the fact that the principle of chopsticks was already present in Yayoi society hints at evolving food rituals and rising awareness of hygiene.

These innovations in form and technique formed a universal current that carried forward into pottery and Sue ware of the Kofun and Heian periods and continues to flow into the present day. The concept of “Yō no Bi,” or “the beauty of utility,” frequently emphasized in the philosophy of Yanagi Sōetsu, founder of the Mingei movement, can be traced back to the Yayoi era. The vessels that accompanied society’s transformations quietly speak to us of the traces of human life. When I hold a weathered piece of Yayoi pottery in my hand, images of nameless artisans and the blazing flames rising in the mountains come vividly to mind.