Mi Kokuch

The Ōmi Provincial Capital ruins, located in Ōtsu, Shiga Prefecture, are the remains of a government administrative complex from the Nara to Heian periods. Designated as a National Historic Site in 1973, the site spans approximately eight or nine chō and features a double concentric enclosure surrounded by moats and earthen ramparts with wooden palisades. The ruins were first identified academically in 1935 and excavated between 1963 and 1965. The inner enclosure contains a raised earthen platform with the remains of government buildings, including a main hall measuring 7x5 bays (approximately 23.1 meters by 15 meters) and smaller structures forming a U-shaped courtyard. Two construction phases were identified: one from the middle Nara period and another spanning the late Nara to early Heian periods. The complex was abandoned around the end of the 10th century. The site is part of a larger designated area that includes three outlying locations. The Sōyama Site, located southeast of the main ruins, features twelve granary foundations used for rice taxation storage and was added in 1998. The Aoei Site, south of the main complex, contains remains of buildings from three construction phases, with roof tiles matching those found at the main site and nearby Sōyama Site. Pottery inscribed "Tempyo Shoko" supports its role as part of the provincial administration. Added in 2005, it is a smaller moated enclosure. The Chūroi Site, northwest of Aoei, features roof tiles identical to those at the main site and may have been the governor's residence, added in 2009. ...