From the early Nara period through the middle of the Heian period, around the 8th to 10th centuries, government offices called koku-cho, where provincial governors administered each province, were established in more than 60 locations across Japan. The cities that developed around them were known as kokufu, or provincial capitals.
The provincial capital of Musashi Province, which covered present-day Tokyo, Saitama, and part of Kanagawa, was located in what is now Fuchu. Its strategic location for both land and water transportation helped Fuchu prosper as a center of politics, commerce, and culture.
The central area of a provincial capital, including the koku-cho government office where administrative affairs were conducted, was known as the kokuga. More than 30 years of archaeological excavations have confirmed that the kokuga stood within the grounds of Okunitama Shrine and the surrounding area to the east. The remains of a large building believed to have been the koku-cho were also discovered here.
Several vermilion pillars stand beside the exhibition facility. They mark the locations of pillars from buildings discovered during the excavations.
Highlights
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The remains of a complex of government offices that administered the province between 1,000 and 1,300 years ago.
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The vermilion pillars give visitors a sense of the scale of the buildings that once stood here.
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Look for the vermilion circles painted on the road beside the historic site as well.
