The mists rise over ancient Japan. The year is 660 BCE, the Jōmon and Yayoi peoples carve their lives from earth and flame, as rice and bronze shape the first clans. By 250 CE, the Kofun Period begins—chieftains buried in giant tombs, the Yamato clan rising to rule. The Asuka Period (538–710) dawns with Buddhism and law; the emperor’s word becom...Read more