연합뉴스
| yna@yna.co.kr 2022-06-29 14:28:33
GYEONGJU, June 29 (Yonhap) – Extensive amounts of various animal bones of Silla period were excavated through the excavation research which has been held by the Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage since 2014, at Gyeongju Wolseong, where royal palace site of Silla used to be located.
Animal bones including wild pig, domestic pig, cow, horse, dog, sea lion, dolphin, shark, pheasant and cat were discovered.
It is a rare case that animal bones have been preserved this well, withstanding over a thousand years.
This was possible because animal bones were well preserved inside the sedimentary layer of Haeja, a pond surrounding the palace.
These animals are estimated to have been used for food.
According to the analysis of a document, it is presumed that there were farms raising livestock during the Silla period.
However, it is only recent that it has been revealed exactly what kind of animals were raised in what way by people of Silla.
The research team analyzed excavated bones and inferred the animal usage of Silla people during that period.
Among excavated animal bones, bones of pigs were excavated most.
It is difficult to know from the shape of bones if they are wild pigs or domestic pigs.
Even though the shape of the bones of domestic pigs and wild pigs are alike, they differ in bone size, age, and eating habits.
In terms of bone size, wild pigs are bigger than domestic pigs.
Also, the difference in eating habits can be recognized through the analysis of collagen inside the bones.
According to the protein analysis of excavated pig bones done by the research team, it was confirmed that animals of Silla consumed grains such as millet and sorghum.
Grains are not much distributed in the wild in the natural state.
In addition, wild pigs and domestic pigs are showing difference in the analysis of eating habits.
In particular, it seems that domestic pigs, the livestock, ate more grains, which are hard to see in the nature, than wild pigs.
The research team also found out that cows and horses of Silla also consumed grains, according to the analysis result of their bones excavated in Haeja.
Hence, it is scientifically proved that people of Silla not only farmed rice but also various grains, and these grains were used to feed livestock.
People of Silla seemed to have used livestock not only for food but for leather production.
According to “Samguk-Sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms),” it is presumed that there was a governmental office which tanned and produced leather products in Silla.
In Wolseong, the royal palace site, bones of dogs were also discovered.
Currently, the research team is speculating if dogs were also raised in royal palace of Silla.
Animal bones excavated in Haeja of Wolseong are still in the process of analysis.
It is expected that the following result of analysis will reveal more specific information of how people of Silla used animals.
(This article is translated from Korean to English by Kim Jimin.)
(END)
[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]