The burial mounds of the Kofun period were often embellished with a large number of ceramic objects placed in the ground over their surface. Known in Japanese as haniwa, these objects first appeared in the central Kansai region (around present-day Kyoto and Osaka), and were usually simple cylinders, arranged in concentric circles, They were made by the same low-fired process as everyday ceramic items (haji). They are thought to have had their origins in the ceremonial stands for vessels holding offerings.

Their use in Kansai declined but a much greater variety came to be produced in the eastern Kantô region (around present-day Tokyo), including architectural structures, animals, military equipment and human figures. The common occurrence of armour suggests there was much fighting at this time.

One of the earliest histories of Japan, the Nihon shoki compiled in AD 720, tells us that the human figures were substitutes for human sacrifices – the live burial of attendants when an imperial family member died. However this is probably an attempt to prove parallels with Chinese culture. Instead the sculptures probably served as symbolic defenders of the deceased, or as resting places for the spirit.