Archaeological evidence indicates that in the Palaeolithic era the Japanese were hunters and gatherers and used some stone implements. The J mon (“cord script”) era (c. 10,500–300 B.C.E.), with various subdivisions, acquired its name from the designs on unearthed pottery datable to 10,000 B.C.E. The Jmon people hunted, fished, and ate vegetables. They lived in sunken pit dwellings and perhaps in villages. Rice only began to be planted in Ky sh late in the Jmon era. Archaeologists have uncovered Jmon sites from Hokkaid all the way south to the Ryky chain. Jmon pot designs indicate magical religious beliefs and a variety of cults. Unearthed earrings and ornaments are similar to those discovered in Korea. | 1 |
