뉴스레터

Question

From July 5 to August 3, 2012, the NAHF conducted an excavation on the Balhae Yeomju Castle (渤海 鹽州城) site (located in present-day Kraskino, Primorsky Krai, Russia) jointly with the 'Institute of History, Archaeology and Ethnology, the Far Eastern Branch of Russian Academy of Science.' What are the major accomplishments and significance of this excavation?

Answer

The accomplishments of this excavation are summarized as follows.

Primorsky Krai and the Archaeological Values of the Balhae Yeomju Castle Site

In Primorsky Krai, there are close to 200 reported remains of Balhae, but most of them, except for a few including those in Kraskino, remain unexplored other than surface survey. Residential sites account for the largest number of remains from the Balhae period in Primorsky Krai, followed by castle ruins, and ancient tomb sites, of which only two, Kraskino Tombs and Chernyatino-5 Tombs, are recognized by Russian experts in Balhae to belong to Balhae. And there are five temple ruins and a very limited number of remains of buildings, caves, and mines. The Balhae Yeomju Castle site is one of these sites under excavation by the NAHF. Russia launched a full-scale excavation on this site in the 1980s and started collaboration with Korea in the 1990s, jointly working on excavations and publishing reports.
The Yeomju Castle site, the reference for Balhae sites in Primorsky Krai, is of high significance in its location where it is possible to work with the Russian academia to interpret the history of Balhae, unlike Chinese perception of it, with focus of Balhae as a successor to Koguryo, and in its potential as the model case for the survey of Balhae sites in East Asia.

A 'Fulling Block' Unearthed: Its Meaning and Academic Value

The excavation group at work,
surveying a Balhae ondol

One of the greatest accomplishments made during this excavation was to unearth a 'fulling block' for the first time in the excavation history of Balhae sites. What's particularly noteworthy about it is that until now, people haven't seen a real fulling block of Balhae before; they have only read about it in the literature where indirect references to fulling blocks were made. That makes the discovery of this fulling block, a concrete object confirming that fulling blocks were actually used during the Balhae period, highly valuable in both archaeology and history. Most importantly, this fulling block was the first one confirmed since the beginning of Balhae site excavations, and considered one of the best accomplishments ever made in the history of Korea-Russia joint Balhae site excavations on Yeomju Castle. This fulling block was found and unearthed during the sector expansion and arrangement for confirmation of the newly exposed ondol, a Korean traditional floor heating system. When I noticed this stone on the excavation site, my intuition told me that this was a 'fulling block,' the kind that was mentioned in the poetry by Balhae's messenger Yang Taesa, which has been verified multiple times and reported on the media.

The moment they confirmed the existence of the kind of Balhae fulling block that had appeared in the literature, the excavation managers on the site cheered. The oblong fulling block measured 67 centimeters in length, 18 centimeters in width, and 8 centimeters in height. Finally we can hear the fulling sounds that may have filled every household in the Balhae castle town a millennium ago. This unearthed fulling block is expected to be a good resource based on which the living culture of Balhae people can be restored by confirming the residential culture during the Balhae period.

Where it Leads and What to Expect in Upcoming Excavations

This excavation was largely a joint effort of the NAHF and Russia, and the accomplishments made this year are extension of the last year's accomplishments: planned construction within Yeomju Castle had been confirmed for the first time (See the excavation report due to be released later this year for the accomplishments of the 2011 excavation). This year's excavation began with confirming the extension of the stone stylobate structure exposed last year, digging a 10mx5m area with a 1m-bank west of the existing sector, and this area was named Sector 4 of Section 47. As the topsoil layer was removed and the area was dug 20 centimeters deep, a large ondol began to be exposed, whereupon two iron spears (25.9cm, 24.1cm) from the Balhae period were collected from between the hypocausts for the first time in Yeomju Castle. These relics were the second of its kind ever unearthed in Primorsky Krai, next to Chernyatino.
Based on the extension of the excavation sectors and the result of further excavation, the continuation of planned sector facilities in the town of Yeomju Castle was confirmed. And a series of important relics was also unearthed. The subsequent excavations will be focused on confirming various structures through extension and further excavation.

A Balhae fulling block

The excavated area is at the highest altitude in the castle town, which offers a nice view, and various structural relics are concentrated in here. Therefore, in the subsequent excavations, overall survey will be conducted on the northern part of the castle that connects the two sectors, specifically extension into the inner castle structure of the castle, as inferred from Russia's measurement of the Earth's magnetic field. And it became possible to confirm the residential area of Goryeo people in the early 20th century that evidently remain within the castle.
The NAHF will lay out a 5-Year Excavation Plan for the northern part of the castle to get the picture of the urban sections of Yeomju Castle. Additionally, through discussion between the working-level excavation staff between Korea and Russia, the NAHF will prepare to publish a general report on the excavations and reference books on the related remains and relics and hold a conference to put together the accomplishments made during the excavations.