Midoro North Kofun
A large sixth- to seventh-century chamber tomb preserved in a private home's garden; visits require advance contact.
Verified site photographs are being prepared.Discover Midoro North Kofun
Midoro North Kofun, also called Midoro Tsukaanakofun, is the northern of two neighbouring tombs collectively known as Midoro Kofun. Official sources differ on its precise date: Gose City material ranges from the middle to the late sixth century, while the prefectural heritage record describes the early seventh century; the national cultural-property record uses the broader Asuka-period label. It is safest to describe it as a late Kofun–Asuka-period tomb rather than assign a single year or ruler. Gose City's visitor guide describes a roughly 20-metre circular mound and an unusually spacious, south-facing, double-sided passage chamber made from large granite blocks. The chamber is 13.4 metres long; the inner chamber measures about 5.6 metres long, 2.9 metres wide and around 3.3 metres high. No coffin is confirmed in place. Fragments of tuff, a material used for stone coffins, led archaeologists to infer that one may once have been installed. A line of pottery drainage pipes beneath the floor points to careful engineering. The tomb is in the rear grounds of a private home. Contact Gose tourism staff before planning any visit, and follow the owner's conditions if access is offered.
Look at the chamber's scale
The Gose City visitor profile records a 13.4-metre passage chamber and an inner chamber about 5.6 metres long, 2.9 metres wide and 3.3 metres high. The large granite stones form a south-facing, double-sided layout. These measurements describe the monument; they do not mean the chamber is a public indoor attraction.
Notice the evidence for a lost coffin
No coffin is confirmed in the chamber today. Gose City's account says tuff fragments, a stone commonly used for coffins, support the inference that one may originally have been present. Keep that distinction between recovered evidence and reconstruction: neither a specific coffin nor the identity of its occupant is known.
Read the floor as infrastructure
A Gose City archaeological note describes roughly twenty earthenware pipes set beneath the floor as drainage, laid during a later burial. Their construction resembles roof-tile making. They show that the chamber's builders managed water below the visible stone architecture, not just the weight of the mound above it.
Settle the Soga tomb story carefully
A Meiji-period theory identified the paired Midoro tombs as the graves of Soga no Emishi and Soga no Iruka. Gose City's cultural-property commentary says archaeological dating places both mounds at least twenty years before those figures died, so the city rejects that identification. It describes the tombs more cautiously in relation to leaders of the ancient Kose clan.
Keep the construction date approximate
Gose City's sources do not give one identical estimate: its tourism profile places the North Kofun in the middle of the sixth century, while its Gose-no-ne profile gives the second half through the end of that century. Nara Prefecture's heritage database describes it as early seventh century, and the national Cultural Heritage Online record uses the broader Asuka-period designation. The tomb is securely part of the late Kofun–Asuka transition, but these records do not support a single precise construction year.
Keep the two Midoro tombs distinct
North and South Kofun stand about 100 metres apart and were designated together as a National Historic Site in 1961. The North tomb is the roughly 20-metre mound with the exceptionally long granite chamber and no confirmed coffin in place. The South tomb is the roughly 25-metre mound with two surviving house-shaped coffins, including the lotus-carved lid. Each is on private family grounds, and permission for one does not grant access to the other.
Treat the old household use as local memory
The municipal visitor profile recalls that, before designation, the cool chamber was used in summer to chill watermelons and escape the heat. This is a reported memory of everyday life around the tomb, not a present-day service or an activity visitors may try.
Arrange permission before setting out
Gose City's current tourism page places the mound in the rear garden of the roughly 180-year-old Nishio residence and asks visitors to contact the Gose Tourism Association in advance. A Nara Prefecture heritage page says the North Kofun chamber can be viewed inside, but that page also tells visitors to confirm opening dates, hours and fees separately; it does not give a booking route or current conditions. For a practical visit, follow Gose City's current private-home guidance and confirm the date, arrival point and owner's conditions first. No guaranteed appointment, routine schedule, fee or photography rules are published. The city also mentions Kofun Café Midoro on the same grounds without publishing its current opening hours. Treat the mapped café as a contact reference, not a confirmed walk-in entrance to the tomb.
What to look for
A 13.4-metre stone chamber
The passage and tall inner room make the North Kofun notably spacious for a tomb in this area.
A drainage system beneath the floor
Archaeologists recorded a line of earthenware pipes, evidence of practical engineering inside the burial structure.
A story corrected by archaeology
The Soga-family tomb theory is a historical proposal, but Gose City says the archaeological dates do not support it.
Photo notes
The chamber is on private residential grounds. No site-specific visitor photography policy was found in the current city listings. Ask the owner before photographing the grounds, chamber, collection or residents; no rights-cleared MyNara image is held.
Make a day of it
Explore guides close to this map point, then check the actual route before travelling. Distances below are straight lines, not walking distances or travel times; map points may not be entrances.
Sources & editorial status
Original MyNara draft based on the linked sources. Sources reviewed 24 October 2026. Opening arrangements, prices and offers may change; use the operator's current information before travelling.
- Gose City tourism portal — Midoro Kofun: North/South distinction, dimensions, private access, contact and designation
- Gose City tourism portal — Kofun Café Midoro: separate operator contact and possible guided experience; confirm current arrangements
- Gose City — Midoro Kofun paired-site description and archaeological features
- Gose City cultural-property commentary — dating and the Soga tomb theory
- Nara Prefecture — Midoro South Kofun record, including North Kofun dating and visitor-condition caveat
- Agency for Cultural Affairs — National Cultural Heritage Online, Midoro Kofun designation and paired-mound description