also: もくかん
noun
wooden strip; mokkan; wooden tablet
Historical term for narrow wooden slips used for writing in ancient East Asia, often bound together. Compare 竹簡 (bamboo strips).
See also: 竹簡
奈良時代の木簡が遺跡から出土した。
Wooden strips from the Nara period were excavated from the ruins.
木簡には当時の税の記録が墨で書かれていた。
Tax records of the time were written in ink on the wooden tablets.
竹簡 refers specifically to bamboo strips used for the same purpose, while 木簡 are made of wood.
From Middle Chinese 木簡 (mok kan, literally 'wood slip'). The reading もっかん is a regular assimilation of もくかん.