A pair of precious swords from the 6th century were found in a Japanese tomb.

Archaeologists have found two rare swords in a 1,500-year-old underground tomb in southern Kyushu, Japan.

Two precious swords were found in an underground tomb in Kyushu, Japan. Photo: Shunsuke Nakamura.

Two swords were discovered along with two skeletons, armor, weapons, and saddles in a 6th-century tomb in Shimauchi Prefecture, southern Kyushu, Ancient Origins reported yesterday.

After being unearthed from the tomb, the swords were handed over to the Gangoji Cultural Heritage Research Institute in Nara for analysis and preservation. The long sword has a round knob at the hilt made of wood and a scabbard covered with a precious warp-woven fabric called tate nishiki. The sword is 142 cm long, but researchers believe its original size was 150 cm. This is the longest sword ever unearthed from an ancient Japanese tomb. The research team speculates that the sword was a gift from the Yamato kingdom, which ruled ancient Yamato province, now Nara prefecture, from 250 to 710.

The second sword is approximately 85 cm long. The round knob at the hilt is decorated with silver, and the hilt is covered with stingray leather. According to Panam Leathers, Japan was one of the earliest countries to use stingray leather for sword hilts. This material is ideal due to its durability, fire resistance, piercing strength, and water resistance. Japanese samurai often used stingray leather on sword hilts and armor. The research team stated that the stingray leather sample on the sword is among the oldest in East Asia.

The owners of the two swords likely belonged to the upper class and were highly respected. "The swords suggest that their owners were powerful figures in southern Kyushu, serving a higher-ranking official and being close retainers of the Yamato king," said Tatsuya Hashimoto, associate professor of archaeology at the Kagoshima University Museum.

According to Heritage of Japan, underground tombs were a form of burial during the Kofun period (250-538 AD) in Japanese history. These tombs could be stone chambers built on top of mounds or beneath mounds with tunnels leading to them from the sides. The interior structure was simple, but the deceased were often buried with many valuable possessions.

According to VNE