A Study Of The Stone-constructed Tombs In The North Of The Korean Peninsula During The Bronze Age

In this paper, the stone-constructed tombs in the north of the Korean Peninsula were studied andthe author compared these tombs with the ones in the Northeast China adjoining the KoreanPeninsula. In this paper, the north of Korean Peninsula was the areas located in the DemocraticPeople’s Republic of Korea(DPRK). The Northeast China was mainly included the east areas of theNortheast China, and according to the modern administrative districts, this areas reached JilinProvince in the north, the border between China and the DPRK in the east, West Liao River in thewest, and the Liaodong Peninsula in the south. The temporal range in this paper was the Bronze Ageof which the upper temporal limit is the Xia Dynasty and the lower temporal limit is the late phase ofWarring States periods. However, when involved the specific materials, the temporal range may havea little extension. The stone-constructed tombs in this paper referred to the tombs made of stones. Thesorts of stone-constructed in the spatial-temporal range of this paper were included accumulated stonetombs, the cavern tombs, the dolmens the stone coffin tombs and the stone outer coffin tombs. Thecontents of this paper were included the distribution patterns, the cultural essence, the date, theinterrelationships and the phrase of each sort of the stone-constructed tombs.This paper is divided into seven chapters.The Chapter One was an introduction. In this chapter, the title of this paper was explained, the spatial-temporal range and the concept of the stone-constructed tombs were defined, and the archaeologicaldiscoveries, the brief history of research, the main problems of the stone-constructed tombs during theBronze Age in the north of the Korean Peninsula were overviewed. At the same time, the authorexplained and interpreted the objective and the wring method of this paper.The Chapter Two and Chapter Three were about the distributions and classifications of the stone-constructed tombs during the Bronze Age in the north of the Korean Peninsula. The sorts of the stone-constructed tombs during the Bronze Age in the north of the Korean Peninsula were included thedolmens, the stone coffin tombs and the stone outer coffin tombs. Firstly, in Chapter Two, theexisting basic materials of the stone-constructed tombs in the north of the Korean Peninsula wereoverviewed. At the same time, referring to the previous research results, the author further divided thetombs into four types, the slate type, the block stone type, the mixed-constructed type and the pit type.Then the dolmens were divided into some sub-types based on the detail features. Secondly, in ChapterThree, the issues about the distributions and the classifications of the stone coffin tombs and the stone outer coffin tombs in the north of the Korean Peninsula were discussed. In the previous researches, thestone coffin tombs and the stone outer coffin tombs had been viewed as the same type. By moremeticulous researching the basic materials of the stone coffin tombs and the stone outer coffin tombsin the north of the Korean Peninsula, this paper shown that there were great distinctions between thetwo sorts of tombs in the distributions, structures and the unearthed objects, so the stone coffin tombsand the stone outer coffin tombs should be seen as different types. In this paper, based on theconstruction methods and the distribution characters, the stone coffin tombs in the north of the KoreanPeninsula could be divided into four types which are Type I, Type II, Type III and Type IV, and thestone outer coffin tombs in the north of the Korean Peninsula could be divided into two types whichare Type I and Type II.The Chapter Four was about the period division and phrasal characteristics of the stone-constructed tombs during the Bronze Age in the north of the Korean Peninsula. This chapter had foursections. The Section One was about the cultural sequences and chronology during the Bronze Age inthe north of the Korean Peninsula. The archaeological cultures related to the the stone-constructedtombs during the Bronze Age in the north of the Korean Peninsula could be divided into four periods,in which the first one equals to the14th-10th century BC, the second one equals to the10th-8thcentury BC, the third one equals to the7the-6th century BC, and the forth one equals to the5th-3rdcentury BC. The Section Two and Section Three were about the period division and the chronology ofthe dolmens, the stone coffin tombs and the stone outer coffin tombs in the north of the KoreanPeninsula. Based on the chronology established by the period division of the Bronze Age cultures inthe former section, the chronology of the stone-constructed tombs could be divided into four periods,and then the developing and changing process of the stone-constructed tombs were discussed. TheSection Four was about the phrasal characteristics of the stone-constructed tombs in the north of theKorean Peninsula. Based on the distribution paterns of each sort of the stone-constructed and of therelated archaeological cultures remains, the stone-constructed tombs in the north of the KoreanPeninsula could be divided into three distribution areas. At the same time, the characteristics ofdistribution areas and phrasal characteristics about each sort of the stone-contructed tombs weresummerized and anlyzed, and then the dynamic distributions, the evolvement rules and theinterrelations of the stone-constructed tombs during the Bronze Age in the north of the KoreanPeninsula were futher discussed.The Chapter Five examined the stone-constructed tombs in the Northeast China adjoining theKorean Peninsula. Firstly, based on the geographic background, the coffin characteristics, thearchaeological discoveries and the research results, the stone-contructed tombs in the Northeast Chinaadjoining the Korean Peninsula could be divided into accumulated stone tombs, the cavern tombs,the dolmens and the stone coffin tombs. Then the distributions and the type characteristics abouteach sorts of the stone-constructed tombs were discussed. At last, based on the distribution patterns about each sorts of the stone-constructed tombs and the related archaeological cultural remains, thestone-constructed tombs during the Bronze Age in the Northeast China adjoining the KoreanPeninsula could be divided into four zones, at the same time, the interconnections, the developmentstages and the phrasal characteristics about each sort of stone-constructed tombs in each zones wereanalyzed.The Chapter Six was an comparison and integrated research about the stone-constructed tombs inthe North of the Korean Peninsula and the Northeast China adjoining the Korean Peninsula. It was themost significant part of this paper. Combining the distributions, the forms of tombs, the periods andthe phrasal characteristics about each sort of the stone-constructed tombs in North of the KoreanPeninsula and China, the author compared each sort of stone-constructed tombs and integratedresearch of culture patterns. There were three sections in this chapter. The Section One was about thedistribution patters and the phrasal characteristics about each sort of stone-constructed tombs in theabove areas. The stone-constructed tombs during the Bronze Age in the research areas were dividedinto eight groups which are from Group I to Group VIII, and then the interactions among each sort ofstone-constructed tombs in each group and the phrasal characteristics about the interactions wereexamined.In the Section Two, the comparison and the interrelationship among each sort of stone-constructed tombs in the North of the Korean Peninsula and China were done. It could be found thatthe stone-constructed tombs during the Bronze Age in above two areas had diverse sorts, complexforms and broad distributions. At the same time, from the perspective about the forms and culturalfeatures in each sort of stone-constructed tombs, there were interconnections and differences betweenthe stone-constructed tombs in the North of the Korean Peninsula and the ones in China. The stone-constructed tombs in these two areas were not particular features of some archaeological culture, tothe contrary, the tombs in each areas had their particular source and transformed independently byconnection and interaction to the adjacent archaeological cultures. The Section Three was about theformation and the cultural patterns about the cultural zone of the stone-constructed tombs in the Northof the Korean Peninsula and China. The formation processes of this cultural zone could be dividedinto three stages in which the first one is the Xia and Shang Dynasty, the second one is from themiddle and late Shang Dynasty to the early Western Zhou Dynasty,and the third one is from theWestern to the Spring and Autumn Period, the Warring States Period.Then a preliminary discussionabout the cultural patterns of this cultural zone was done.The Chapter Seven was conclusion. Several understandings were summarized. The limitations ofthis research and the issues needed to be considered futherly in the later work were pointed out.