Sannai-Maruyama Site
Jōmon period archaeological site and museum
The Sannai-Maruyama Site (Japanese: 三内丸山遺跡, Hepburn: Sannai-Maruyama iseki) is an archaeological site and museum located in the Maruyama and Yasuda neighborhoods to the southwest of central Aomori City in Aomori Prefecture in northern Japan, containing the ruins of a very large Jōmon period settlement. The ruins of a 40-hectare (400,000 m2; 99-acre) settlement were discovered in 1992, when Aomori Prefecture started surveying the area for a planned baseball stadium. Archaeologists have used this site to further their understanding of the transition to sedentism and the life of the Jōmon people. Excavation has led to the discovery of storage pits, above ground storage, and long houses. These findings demonstrate a change in the structure of the community, architecture, and organizational behaviors of these people. Because of the extensive information and importance, this site was designated as a Special National Historical Site of Japan in 2000, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site as part of the Jōmon Prehistoric Sites in Northern Japan collection in 2021. Today the public can visit the site, its various reconstructions of Jōmon structures, and a museum that displays and houses artifacts collected on the site, which have collectively been designated an Important Cultural Property of Japan.
Etymology
The Sannai-Maruyama Site is not named after people. It is named after two districts of Aomori City and their geographic features among which the site is located: Maruyama: 'Circular mountain or mound' (丸山) and Sannai: 'Three insides' (三内), referring to the three ravines in the area. The district of Maruyama is part of Sannai ward.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Sannai-Maruyama Site” as jōmon period archaeological site and museum. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as jōmon period archaeological site and museum. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q911970. VIAF identifies the subject as 260923432. The Library of Congress control number is sh96006213. Authority coordinates are 40.812, 140.696. 2 of 7 selected statements include explicit references; 4 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1992, 2000 and 2021.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Sannai-Maruyama Site”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Sannai-Maruyama Site primary sources, Sannai-Maruyama Site archive and Sannai-Maruyama research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Sannai-Maruyama Site”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Sannai-Maruyama Site” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.