1 Starting Out in Archaeology

Peking, outside of the Imperial City wall, depicted by Charles W. Barlett. Bartlett visited China first in 1916 and again in 1919 and 1921. When Yosi arrived in Peking in 1943, parts of the wall were still standing. Watercolor from the collection of Darrel C. Karl.

Eating well in peking

A Dr. Sinoto, I’d like to start by asking about your family. I understand you come from a family of scholars.

S I am not sure if that’s true of my entire family, but my father was an accomplished scholar. He was the first and only student in the genetics department when it was established at Tokyo Imperial University. He then became a professor there and helped establish the International Christian University, where he became president. People always said that my own scholarship would never measure up to his.

My father was also a devout Christian and a disciple of Kanzō Uchimura.¹ Consequently, he never smoked or drank, and some people felt he had a stern personality. Even so, he tried to raise my two younger brothers and me in a liberal and supportive atmosphere. He always said that he didn’t want any of his sons to become a government official. All three of us were educated at Jiyu Gakuen, a private school in Tokyo, because my father sympathized with the educational philosophy of its founders, Motoko and Yoshikazu Hani.² They wanted to do away with rote learning and combine education with real-life experiences and work. Thinking back on it now, I realize that sending us to Jiyu Gakuen must have been difficult—the tuition fees at private schools were very high in those days.

A Did you study in Myonichikan [House of Tomorrow], the famous building complex designed by Frank Lloyd Wright?³

S Wright designed the buildings in Toshima, for female students. I was in the third group of boy students who studied in the buildings in Minamisawa, located near what is now Hibarigaoka Station on the Seibu Ikebukuro Line. Arata Endō, who apprenticed under Wright, designed the Minamisawa buildings. When I entered Jiyu Gakuen as a freshman, the Hanis had been planning to establish the best institution of higher learning in Japan. Unfortunately, when the war started, the school was closed. As you know, the war made life very difficult for everyone. Eventually, all the schools were closed, and the government drafted young students to work in airplane factories and other places to support the war effort.

When I was in school, I had read a book by an anthropologist from Kyoto University

The Sinoto family (left to right): Yosinori, Yosito, Yosihiko, Yositake, and Yosie.

Yosito Sinoto (1895–1990) graduated from Tokyo Imperial University (now the University of Tokyo) in 1920 with a doctorate in botany. He was a professor at Tokyo Imperial University, president of the International Christian University in Tokyo, and honorary president of California International University.

Emperor Akihito of Japan presented him with the prestigious Shiju-hosho (Medal of Honor with Purple Ribbon), which is awarded to individuals who have contributed to academic and artistic developments, improvements, and accomplishments.

who was in Inner Mongolia during the war. I decided right then what I wanted to do with my life and where I wanted to go.

A The anthropologist was Kinji Imanishi,⁴ wasn’t it?

S Yes. But because of the war, archaeology was considered non-essential work and people weren’t allowed to study the archaeology of China and Mongolia. When I asked my father what I should do, he said he knew the man who headed the North China Agricultural Experiment Station⁵ outside of Peking, and would inquire about getting me a job there. I later applied and was told, “Sure, come on over.”

The journey involved taking a train to Shimonoseki, crossing the sea by ferry to Busan, and catching another train to Peking. I promptly went to Tokyo Station to purchase a ticket. When I got there, I saw a notice that tickets were no...