The anonymous protagonist? Agency and abstraction in Kyushu decorated tombs of the Japanese Late Kofun period

Abstract

Mortuary traditions offer a wealth of insights into the social landscapes of human communities. Here, the author examines anthropomorphic representations in the decorated tombs of Kyushu Island, Japan, dating from the Late Kofun period (sixth–seventh centuries AD). The consistently subordinate scale, strategic architectural placement and systematic anonymity of these figures suggest that they did not function as portraits of the dead but were likely symbolic agents embodying a collective rather than individual identity. By demonstrating that the human figure is not consistently the protagonist in these funerary contexts, this study reframes our understandings of Late Kofun deathways.