Work / monument · artifact

Inariyama Sword

471 · 5th century

The Inariyama Sword is an iron sword excavated in 1968 from the Inariyama Kofun in Saitama Prefecture, Japan, whose gold-inlaid inscription was discovered by X-ray in 1978. The text, dated to a year usually read as 471, names the great king Wakatakeru, generally identified with Emperor Yūryaku, and records a local lineage's service to him. It is key evidence for the reach of the Yamato kingship in the 5th century.

Inariyama Sword
Image: Saigen Jiro · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons

Mentioned in 1 state history

Yamato

See also

Cite this entry
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Inariyama Sword. In The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/inariyama-sword
MLA
“Inariyama Sword.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/inariyama-sword. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Inariyama Sword.” The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/inariyama-sword.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Inariyama Sword’, The Epoch Institute Encyclopedia. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/encyclopedia/inariyama-sword (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random entry ↻