Editing Japanese art (section)

===Kofun art===
[[File:NintokuTomb Aerial photograph 2007.jpg|thumb|Tomb of Emperor Nintoku located in Sakai, Japan. The keyhole-like tomb is 486 metres long, 305 metres wide at the bottom and 245 metres in diameter.]]

The third stage in Japanese prehistory, the [[Kofun period]] (c. 300&nbsp;– 710 AD),<ref name="History of Japanese Art"/> represents a modification of [[Yayoi]] culture, attributable either to internal development or external force. This period is most notable for its tomb culture and other artifacts such as bronze mirrors and clay [[Japanese sculpture|sculptures]] called ''[[haniwa]]'' which were erected outside these tombs. Throughout the Kofun period, the characteristics of these tombs evolved from smaller tombs erected on hilltops and ridges to much larger tombs built on flat land.<ref name=":03">{{Cite journal|last=Hong|first=Wontack|date=2005|title=Yayoi Wave, Kofun Wave, and Timing: The Formation of the Japanese People and Japanese Language|journal=Korean Studies|volume=29|issue=1|pages=1–29|doi=10.1353/ks.2006.0007|issn=1529-1529|doi-access=free}}</ref> The largest tomb in Japan, the tomb of [[Emperor Nintoku]], houses 46 burial mounds and is shaped like a keyhole,<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia |last=Kidder jr|first=J. Edward|entry=Nintoku, tomb of Emperor|date=2003|publisher=Oxford University Press|encyclopedia =Oxford Art Online|doi=10.1093/gao/9781884446054.article.t062565}}</ref> a distinct characteristic found within later Kofun tombs.<ref name=":03" />