Tweet Date: 12/26/17
Article Date: 12/26/17
Article Publisher: Asahi Shimbun
Article Link: http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201712260024.html
Location: Agematsu, Nagano Prefecture
Site Name: Omiyanomoriura Site お宮の森裏遺跡
Time Period: Incipient Jomon Period (16,000-11,000 yrs ago)
Object: Oldest Chestnuts found from the Jomon Period
Why is this interesting/important? The oldest chestnuts from the Jomon period were discovered at the Omiyanomoriura Site in Nagano Prefecture. The chestnuts were radiocarbon dating put the chestnuts at apx 12,900 to 12,700 years old. This is over 1000 years older than chestnuts from Numazu in Shizuoka prefecture, which were previously the oldest found in Japan. Chestnuts played an incredibly important role in the lives of the Jomon people, and this find gives us some evidence for how far back that relationship goes.