For 10 Mural Tombs in the adjacent areas of Pyeongyang from April 19 to May 2

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2006-04-18 13:32

Daejon--(뉴스와이어)--The Cultural Heritage Administration announced that officials and experts from two Koreas will conduct a joint inspection on the Goguryeo Tomb Complex, the only UNESCO World Heritage in North Korea, to conduct scientific study and preservation work.

Goguryeo (37 BCE - 668 CE) was one of the early three kingdoms which ruled over Korea. Its territory covered the northern half of the peninsula and extended far into Manchuria.

Once the Council of Historians from the Two Koreas and the Korean Council for Reconciliation and Cooperation, respectively from the South and North, agreed to survey the tombs, the South’s Cultural Heritage Administration and the North’s Department of Culture Preservation decided to support it actively. The fact-finding survey will be carried out in a systematic and scientific manner with the participation of preservation scientists from the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage of South Korea.

The Goguryeo Tomb Complex comprises 63 ancient tombs with 16 murals spread over the cities of Pyongyang, Nampo and Daedong County in Pyeongannam-do Province and Anak-gun County in Hwanghaedo. These large tombs, originating from the period between the 3rd and 7th centuries BC, offer a unique testimony to the fact that Goguryeo had its own culture: the murals depict in vivid style the diverse aspects of Goguryeo life and its people's view of the universe.

In the fact-finding survey lasting for two weeks from April 19 to May 2, the South Korean team, composed of 20 preservation scientists from the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage and scholars, will cooperate with their counterparts from the North.

The surveyed tombs will include 10 at Dongmyeongwang with murals, Jinpari tombs No. 1 & 4, Honamri Sasinchong, Gangseo Daemyo, Gangseo Jungmyo, Deokheungri Tomb, Susanri Tomb, Yonggang Daemyo and Ssangyeongchong. Jinpari Tomb No. 4, Honamri Sasinchong, Yonggang Daemyo and Ssangyeongchong have never been surveyed by South Korean scholars. The joint team will analyze the pigments of the murals and examine whether there are structural problems such as subsidence and microorganisms residing in the ancient tombs.

Based on the data collected from the survey, the participants will draw up systematic and scientific preservation measures and publish their findings. The South will seek concrete ways to cooperate with the North for the implementation of the preservation measures.

On April 20th before the actual survey, Kang Man Gil, president, of The Council of Historians from the Two Koreas; Hong June You, administrator for the Cultural Heritage Administration; and Bong Gon KIM, director general of the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, will attend a ceremony praying for the smooth operation of the survey. They will meet with North Korean officials, including Director General Kim Seok Hwan of the Department of Culture Preservation, to discuss the implementation of a sustainable and plausible project on inter-Korean exchange and cooperation in the field of cultural heritage.

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