Did HIDDEN PATHS find a mysterious megalith in Kyoto?! Part 1.

The 'Sakafune-ishi' is a mysterious stone in the Asuka region of Nara, not far from the more well known Masuda no Iwafune (The Rock Ship of Masuda). It is 5.5 metres in length and 2.3 metres wide. There seems to be no clear origin story to the stone and it looks like it may have broken off from a larger structure at some point. What is strange about this 1 metre thick rock are the carvings about 6-10cm deep in the top surface of circles and rounded shapes connected by straight troughs or canals. The site of the large rock was designated a national historic site in 1927.

Pictured below, the Sakafune Ishi in the Asuka area of Nara (photo from Asuka Japan Heritage site)

Suggestions and theories as to the background of the rock and it's possible purpose differ in extremes. On the one hand it has been said to be a tool in the process of sake rice wine brewing, and on the other that it is part of a larger stone carved map, and even that it may have some extra terrestrial connection.

But what is quite intriguing is that another, although smaller, identical rock is in Kyoto. The 'sakafune-ishi' in Kyoto is not on public display like the Asuka megalith, and seems to be 'abandoned'. Is it a second rock of the same purpose? Is it a replica? And why is it, for all intents and purposes, almost 'lost', covered by the undergrowth. At HIDDEN PATHS I came across the Kyoto sakafune-ishi by chance, and will endeavour to find out more. Keep following the HIDDEN PATHS - Walking Historical Kyoto blog for Part 2!

Pictured below, the Kyoto Sakafune Ishi.

A point of interest as to the location of the Asuka Sakafune Ishi is that it's said that in the 7th century Empress Saimei practiced fertility rites and ceremonies there. Could the stone and it's carvings have some religious background attached to these ceremonies in the six hundreds?

Comments, theories, information welcomed in the comments section below.