ID :
137659
Sun, 08/15/2010 - 06:26
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https://www.oananews.org//node/137659
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Newly found Koguryo tomb in N. Korea offers clues to ancient E. Asia+
PYONGYANG, Aug. 14 Kyodo -
North Korea has unearthed a large Koguryo mural tomb dating back to around the
fifth century, a development archaeologists say will shed fresh light on folk
culture, customs and cultural exchanges in ancient East Asia.
Kyodo News sent a team of journalists and scholars to Pyongyang recently and
conducted joint research on the Tongsan-dong mural tomb in the capital's
Raknang district with the Archaeological Institute of North Korea's Academy of
Social Sciences.
The research teams found mural paintings and more traces on the ceiling and
walls of the tomb, which consists of a passage, approach, front chamber and its
two annexes, connecting passage, and back chamber.
It was the first time that Japan and North Korea had conducted full-scale joint
academic research. It was also the first discovery of a mural tomb from the
center of the former Raknang region of the Koguryo dynasty, which ruled from
the northern part of the Korean Peninsula to the southern part of northeastern
China from the latter part of the first century B.C. to A.D. 668.
North Korea plans to designate the tomb, an underground-style earth-covered
stone tomb, a national treasure and file an application with the U.N.
Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization for it to be recognized as a
World Heritage site.
A layer of mud covering the tomb's interior made it difficult for the teams to
clearly see the murals. But among the paintings confirmed were those of a man
with a horn-like hat riding a horse, a procession of men on armored horses with
flags, and a sword-carrying man believed to be a gatekeeper warrior.
If all the murals are identified, the tomb will likely become as valuable as
the Tokhung-ri mural tomb, a World Heritage site in Nampho, in providing
historical material, according to Japanese experts.
The Kyodo team included Professor Masahiro Saotome, an archaeologist at the
University of Tokyo, and Shigeo Aoki, a Cyber University professor specializing
in the preservation of historic remains.
''The discovery is significant because the tomb was unearthed in an area where
experts believed there would be no Koguryo mural tomb,'' Saotome said.
Saotome believes the interior was decorated with magnificent mural paintings,
and said the tomb may have belonged to a man who wielded considerable power in
the Raknang region.
''The tomb will provide a precious source of material for the study of history,
cultural exchanges, paintings, folk culture and customs in ancient East Asia,
including Japan,'' he said.
The Tongsan-dong mural tomb is located on a hill about 4.5 kilometers southeast
of central Pyongyang. It was discovered in October last year during housing
construction.
The rectangular-shaped front chamber measures 2.4 meters by 2.1 meters and is
3.3 meters high. It has an arched ceiling with three layers of triangular
props. There is one robbery hole respectively on the northern and western walls
of the front chamber.
The back chamber, which is squarish, measures 3.36 meters by 3.28 meters and is
3.4 meters high.
The ceiling of the back chamber was broken when builders carrying out ground
leveling for construction removed a water tank that happened to have been
placed on the tomb.
A mound covering the stone chambers -- about 8 meter high and 35 meters in
diameter -- was also preserved with alternate layers of lime, char and clay.
During the excavation, the North's Academy of Social Sciences unearthed the
bones of a man and those of two women. One woman is believed to have been the
man's wife and the other his concubine.
The academy also excavated pure gold petal-shaped ornaments, domed ornaments,
nails for coffins, porcelain and earthenware. There was also a celadon
candlestick, the first to have been found in North Korea.
==Kyodo
2010-08-14 23:35:09
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