Yame Stone (Fukuoka Prefecture) [Famous Japanese Stone]

YAME Stone

Yame stone

It is one of the famous stones mined in the area of ​​Kamiyo-cho and Kuroki-cho in Yamauchi, Yame-gun, Yame City, Fukuoka Prefecture.
It is a deposit of the Aso pyroclastic flow from about 70,000 years ago, containing lenticular yellow pumice and black obsidian.
The Aso pyroclastic flow at this time was extremely large, crossing the Shimabara Peninsula and Amakusa straits and reaching Ube in Yamaguchi Prefecture.
This eruption formed the current caldera.
Yame stone is characterized by its softness, ease of carving, light weight, and excellent resistance to fire and cold.
It is mainly used for stone pagodas, stone carvings of Buddha, and stone lanterns, and the Yame stone lanterns are particularly famous.
The hardness and color vary depending on the layer from which it is extracted.
The name Yame comes from Yametsuhime, a goddess who appears in the Nihon Shoki.

This is one of the Japan stones produced in the area around Yame City, Kamiyo Town, and Kurogi Town in Yame County, Fukuoka Prefecture. It is a deposit of the Aso pyroclastic flow from about 70,000 years ago, containing lenticular yellow pumice and black obsidian. The Aso pyroclastic flow at that time was very large, reaching the Shimabara Peninsula and Amakusa across the strait as far as Ube in Yamaguchi Prefecture. The eruption at that time formed the current caldera. Yame stone is soft, easy to carve, lightweight, and has excellent fire and cold resistance. It is mainly used for stone towers, stone carvings, Buddhist stone, and lanterns, and Yame stone lanterns are particularly famous. The hardness and color vary depending on the stratum from which it is collected. The name Yame comes from Yametsuhime, a goddess who appears in the Nihon Shoki.