hankyoreh

The golden Geumnyeongchong crown hangs in midair.

“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly, what is essential is invisible to the eye.”

Two golden bells belonging to a Silla dynasty prince of 1,500 years ago are dangling in front of me, shining like stars, reminding me of a famous line from the novel “The Little Prince.” This quote above is the advice that the desert fox gave to his friend the Little Prince who wanted to leave his home planet.

This was also the will of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry (1900-1944), who died while flying over the Mediterranean as a French air force pilot during World War II. Through his novel, the author used the fox to share with the world what he had learned about life and living while flying.

A special exhibition called “Gold Bells, A Young Soul’s Companion” is currently being held at the Gyeongju National Museum in North Gyeongsang Province. The exhibition has been drawing interest for revealing the lost and at times sorrowful secrets of the tragic death of a “little prince” of the Silla dynasty through findings in the Geumnyeongchong Tomb. These new details are being revealed for the first time now, in the 21st century.

Geumnyeongchong became famous for the clay figurines of warriors on horseback, golden crowns, and glass tableware discovered by Japanese scholars back in 1924. However, the real story and truth about this tomb were hidden.

A pair of two golden bells that, when excavated from the Geumnyeongchong Tomb in 1924 by Japanese scholars, were found on the hip of a young body.

This exhibition, which features the tomb of a young Silla royal, starts by explaining how the name Geumnyeong itself originated from the two golden eggs embedded with 15 exquisite jewels found on the belt of a young prince in the tomb.

After this sadness was buried in the royal tomb over 1,500 years ago, the full truth was still not revealed even in the 1920s when the tomb was excavated. Ultimately, another 100 years would have to pass before this heartbreak would be revealed to future generations.

A large model horse that was reconfirmed during the re-excavation of the Geumnyeongchong Tomb in 2021.

The first Japanese scholars to discover this tomb did not try to understand this sorrow. Instead, they were desperately looking to find archaeological evidence that would prove that the Korean Peninsula had been their territory since ancient times. After excavating the tomb for less than a month, they ended up only emphasizing only the elegant items, including two golden bells found in the waist belt of a young child and the earthenware of warriors on horseback.

The colonists’ dig report was written in a sound and complete way, which was rare for those times, and it is regarded as a major achievement that set the foundation for research into the structure of such stone mound tombs unique to the 6th century Silla Kingdom. Nevertheless, access to Silla’s spiritual world and emotions buried in this tomb remained out of reach.

Earthenware warriors on horseback can be seen as prototypical Korean cultural artifacts, a fact that was neglected during the original excavation of the tomb by Japanese scholars during the colonial era.

The gold crown and belt are displayed as they would appear on a child of about 1 meter (3.3 ft).

The current exhibition combines the results of the museum's re-excavation of the site from 2018 to 2020 with the findings made during the Japanese colonial era. The exhibition has about 300 items on display, including golden crowns, golden bells, pottery depicting warriors on horses, golden belts, gold rings, and gold breast bands.

The first section of the exhibition, which shows items found when the tomb was first discovered, displays artifacts including two golden eggs, glass cups, and different shaped bells.

The real heart of the exhibition, however, can be found in the second part, titled “The Journey to the Afterlife Together.”

A small gold crown with a height of 27 centimeters and a diameter of 15 centimeters (10.6 x 5.9 in) and a golden belt were placed to match the height of a child of around 1 meter and an unconventional attempt was made to hang the crown in midair.

Next to this display, accessories including high-quality earthenware, breast bands, earrings, golden rings, and bracelets that were buried in the same tomb can also be seen.

The warriors on horseback depicted through earthenware, which can be seen as the ultimate display of Silla earthenware, are made up of two pieces, commonly known as a master statue and a servant statue, and are placed in front of the display case of the crown to serve as guides to the deceased.

wo glass vessels with cerulean colored dots in two lines found in the tomb served as proof of the high class of those buried in the Geumneyongchong Tomb.

Earthenware pots found in the tomb show a high level of artistry and craft.

In the area where the re-excavation and restoration results are displayed, two items stand out in particular: a restored horse saddle ornament and a real leather strap that was placed at the back of horses.

At the time of the original excavation, the Japanese mistakenly thought that the horse with the saddle ornament was a monster. But now, finally, this exquisite piece of art has reemerged and is being shared with the public.

The leather strap is a rare relic that is being revealed to the public for the first time through this exhibition, and even the connecting parts such as metal junctures still look vivid, as if looking into a time capsule.

The head and front legs were found intact, but most of the remaining parts were not found. The other parts are presumed to be scattered at nearby connected tombs and in the vicinity of Siknichong, raising curiosity about the future excavation process.

A leather belt found in the tomb was likely to have been used for horseriding in Silla, and represents one of the rarer pieces of the collection that is on display to the public.

A figure of a horse that was found in the tomb was mistaken for a beast by the Japanese scholars who first excavated it.

This exhibition has great academic significance in that it brings together the results of archeological excavations completed both in current times and 100 years ago to bring together the relics excavated from Geumnyeongchong in one place for the first time in history.

It is also significant for how it shows us the sadness of burying what you love, and how this tomb, created by bitter and distant feelings, was created. The exhibition runs until March 5, 2023.

Article and photos by Roh Hyung-suk, culture correspondent

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