Early Jomon sub-period

   This time period coincides with an increase in world-wide sea levels and warmer mean temperatures than today.  Core samples indicate the sea level was 2-3 m higher than today; pushing the coastline well inland for the Kanto plain. 

    A population increase is believed to have occurred during the Early Jomon sub-period.  In the Kanto and Chubu regions alone there are over 1000 sites; for the Moroiso phase, over 200 of these sites have housepits associated with them.  In contrast, just slightly over 2500 sites for the whole Japanese archipelago belong to the Earliest Jomon sub-period.  Koyama has estimated the population to be well over 100,000 individuals (Kidder 1993).

    Jomon villages begin to take on a more long-term nature.  Pit houses are built using larger and more substantial posts.  Most sites with house pits contain the pottery from two or more consecutive phases.  While the evidence points to most settlements being relatively sedentary during this sub-period, Habu has noted that the evidence does not imply that they were used year round.  Her study of lithic assemblages from settlement sites in the Kanto region suggests that the villages only had seasonal occupation.

    As can be expected with the rise in sea level, the number of coastal sites increases.  Many of these sites are shell middens.  Analysis of the shells indicates that both salt water and fresh water species were exploited.  

   Pottery at this time became more elaborate and regionalization began to develop even further.  Flat bottomed pottery becomes the norm.  New vessel shapes, such as deep vessels, narrow necked jars, and shallow bowls appear at this time.  Twill patterns (ayasugimon) and feather patterns (ujo-jomon) are developed.  Some of the more famous pottery types developed at this time are: Ento Kaso, Moroiso, and Ukishima.

Middle Jomon>