Excavated from Okinoshima Island, Munakata City, Fukuoka Prefecture
8th century
Height 4.7cm, mouth diameter 4.0cm, body diameter 6.5cm, bottom diameter 3.8cm
Munakata Grand Shrine
　Okinoshima Island is an isolated island in the ocean facing the Genkai Sea, and the entire island is the site of a ritual site as the Okitsumiya Shrine of Munakata Taisha. Rituals on the island date from the Kofun period to the early Heian period, and it is thought that rituals were held to pray for the safety of ancient maritime traffic from Kitakyushu to Iki Tsushima and on to Korea. Twelve Sansai vases with bodies and five lids were found at the No. 1 Open-Air Site, along with an eight-sided mirror, a copper bowl with a copper cover, a smoothed stone ritual object, and Sue vessels, indicating the final stage of the ritual on the island. This Sansai small jar does not have a lid, but it is the oldest of the small jars in terms of the short, upright neck and the tension of the shoulders. It is made of white high-quality clay and is well fired, with bright and shiny colors.
