hankyoreh

A gilt bronze crown, gold earrings, a breast band, a silver belt, beads, and bracelets from the Silla period uncovered in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province. (photos provided by the Silla Cultural Heritage Research Institute)

An ancient tomb from the Silla kingdom (57 BC–935 AD) in the Hwangnam area of Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, where a gilt bronze shoe was discovered last May, has now turned up a number of other antique ornaments, including a splendidly decorated gilt bronze crown, gold earrings, a breast band, a silver belt, beads, and bracelets. The crown and ornaments are drawing particular notice for being preserved as originally worn by the occupant where the remains were found within the tomb.

A closer look at the gilt bronze crown and gold earrings. The blue circles highlight features that differentiate the crown from others discovered in the region.

On Sept. 3, the Silla Cultural Heritage Research Institute announced that in the process of its investigation of Tomb No. 120-2 in Hwangnam as part of a Silla royal capital restoration and servicing project, it discovered ornaments dating to roughly the first half of the sixth century preserved intact as worn from head to toe by the tomb’s occupant.

“The individual buried here is believed to have been a member of the Silla nobility,” the institute explained. “They were found to have been wearing a gilt bronze crown with thick earrings on both ears and gilt bronze shoes on their feet.” This marks the first time since the excavation of the Great Tomb of Hwangnam in 1973-1975 that ornaments such as a gilt bronze crown, earrings, a breast band, a belt, bracelets, rings, and gilt bronze shoes have been found preserved as originally worn by the deceased. The artifacts were discovered within one of the Silla era’s characteristic wooden chamber tombs with a stone mound.

The site where the artifacts were discovered in tact as originally worn by the tomb’s occupant

The gilt bronze crown stands out among the relics, being the first unearthed in the 45 years since those found in the area of the Great Tomb of Hwangnam’s southern tomb and the Royal Tomb of King Michu in 1975. The crown has branch- and antler-shaped decorations on a round band-shaped frame, with ornamental heart-shaped holes located at the tips of the decorations. On either side of the frame are gold pendants made of curved jade and gold beads, with an openwork section between the frame and decorations featuring alternating “T”- and inverted “T”-shaped perforations.

The region surrounding Tomb No. 120-2 in Hwangnam, Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province

If the openwork section represents a crest, then this would represent the first case of a Gyeongju wooden chamber tomb occupant wearing both a crown and a crest; if it was used for decoration, then it could be seen as an example of a never-before-seen type of crown. With a length of 176cm between the center of the crown and the heel of the gilt bronze shoes, the tomb’s occupant is believed to have measured around 170cm in height. The excavated relics are to be made public in real time in an on-site online briefing on the Cultural Heritage Administration’s YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/chluvu).

By Roh Hyung-suk, culture correspondent

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]