During his stay in Japan as one of the foreign technicians employed to aid the Westernization and industrialization of Japan, William Gowland (1842-1922) conducted the first truly accurate scientific surveys of burial mounds (kofun) of the 3rd-7th centuries, including a number of imperial mausolea. Illustrated with many photographs, mainly taken by himself, this book introduces, describes and evaluates his achievements, now highly regarded by Japanese archaeologists, and considers the fruits of his work.