This is a group of Sue ware kiln sites distributed across Nagafune-cho, Oku-cho, and Ushimado-cho in Setouchi City, Okayama Prefecture. About 60 kiln sites have been discovered so far, and this was the largest ceramic production area in the ancient Kibi region. It is estimated that the Oku Kiln Site Group was established in the first half of the 6th century. Sue ware production started on a small scale at the beginning, but gradually expanded and reached its peak in the Nara Period. The production of Sue ware declined rapidly at the end of the Nara Period, and by the end of the Heian Period, there were only a few kilns remaining that produced miscellaneous daily-use ware. The types of products produced at the Oku kiln site are almost the same as those found at Sue ware kilns in other regions, but a Shibi tail and a ceramic coffin were found at one of the kiln sites belonging to the Hakuho period, indicating that a wide variety of products were produced. The Ibe ancient kiln site (Bizen ware), a major center of the medieval ceramic industry, is located in Bizen Town, Wake County, adjacent to the Oku ancient kiln site group, and can be considered as a development of the Oku ancient kiln site group. In addition to the Oku kiln site group, there are also the Katsuta, Sue, Bicchu pottery, and Kojima kiln sites in the Kibi region, but they are all smaller in scale than the Oku kiln site group.
