Hansung Baekje Museum-National Gyeongju Cultural Heritage Research Institute, Special Exhibition 'Gyeongju Jjoksaem Silla Tombs Encountered in Seoul'

Introduction of Excavation Results of Silla Tombs at Gyeongju Jjoksaem District from June 8 to June 12

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] Hansung Baekje Museum announced on the 7th that, according to the academic exchange agreement signed with the National Gyeongju Cultural Heritage Research Institute, it will hold a special exhibition titled "Gyeongju Jjoksaem Silla Tombs Encountered in Seoul" for 66 days from the 8th to June 12 in the Hansung Baekje Museum's special exhibition hall.

This special exhibition is planned as a follow-up to the 2019 special exhibition "Gyeongju Wolseong Encountered in Hansung," and will bring together major relics from the Gyeongju Jjoksaem Silla tomb site, which has been excavated since 2007. In particular, this exhibition will showcase over 400 key artifacts excavated from wooden coffins (木槨墓), stone-cist wooden coffins (積石木槨墓), and stone coffins (石槨墓) to provide a comprehensive understanding of Silla tomb culture.

The exhibition is divided into three parts, starting with wooden coffins confirmed at the Gyeongju Jjoksaem Silla tomb site, followed by stone-cist wooden coffins and stone coffins, which were intensively constructed during the Silla Maripgan (麻立干) period.

Lamellar Armor

The first part, "Wooden Coffins," examines the Jjoksaem site during the formative period of Silla and introduces Silla tombs just before the full-scale construction of stone-cist wooden coffins. It features new-style tile pottery (瓦質土器) and old-style earthenware (陶質土器) excavated from Jjoksaem wooden coffins, as well as a complete horse armor (馬甲) excavated from Jjoksaem C10. Notably, a reconstructed replica of the horse armor, faithfully restored from the actual artifact, will be displayed to enhance visitors' understanding.

The second part, "Stone-Cist Wooden Coffins," is organized to help understand the development and changes of Silla through artifacts excavated from tombs. It exhibits various gold and silver ornaments, weapons such as ring-hilted large swords (環頭大刀) and iron spears (鐵矛), and horse gear including stirrups (?子), saddles (鞍橋), and horse trappings (杏葉) excavated from the stone-cist wooden coffins at the Jjoksaem site. Additionally, pottery with attached clay figurines (土偶), pottery engraved with procession scenes, and large iron tools believed to be agricultural implements are comprehensively introduced. This section focuses on the flourishing Silla tomb culture during the Maripgan period.

The third part examines "Stone Coffins," which have relatively fewer artifacts and smaller sizes compared to stone-cist wooden coffins and have been somewhat neglected in Silla tomb research. It introduces the significance of stone coffins being constructed almost simultaneously with stone-cist wooden coffins through pottery such as high-footed cups (高杯) and horn-shaped cup stands (角杯臺), as well as weapons like large swords (大刀) excavated from stone coffins. Particularly, jars engraved with dragons, turtles, and birds excavated from stone coffins are also displayed, allowing visitors to experience the artistic world of the Silla people.

This special exhibition is free to attend, and to ensure safe viewing amid COVID-19, visitors must comply with quarantine rules such as wearing masks, temperature checks, and maintaining social distancing. Digital videos to aid understanding of the exhibition content are also available, and various events including lectures related to the special exhibition are prepared.

Hansung Baekje Museum plans to continue collaborating steadily with various institutions to share research results on prehistory and ancient times. Furthermore, it aims to develop and provide diverse content so that more citizens can easily understand and enjoy the ancient history of Korea, including Baekje.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.