The kofun of Empress Suiko is located in Taishi-cho, Minami Kawachi-gun, Osaka Pref. Empress Suiko (reigned 593-628) was Japan’s first woman to take the throne. Backed up by Soga no Umako, the chieftain of the Soga clan, she nominated Prince Shotoku as regent, and introduced advanced political system and culture she acquired through the diplomatic relationship with Sui. During her reign, a lot of innovative political reforms were made and Asuka culture centering on Buddhism blossomed.
The tomb of Empress Suiko, or formally named “Yamada Takatsuka Kofun,” is a three-terraced square-shaped kofun with an edge length of about 60 m. The east-west edges are a little longer than the north-south edges. Inside the kofun, there supposed to be two chambers dug into the side; where the stone coffins of Empress Suiko and his son Prince Takeda are presumed to be placed respectively. As this beautiful kofun is raised like a small island, its fine proportion is outstanding in the Valley of the Kings.