Koguryo lasted from 277 BC to AD 668. The tombs of the first feudal state of Korea have paintings on walls and ceilings.
The murals in the Koguryo tombs discovered near the Amnok River, in the basin of the Taedong River that runs through Pyongyang and in South Hwanghae Province, including those dating back to the period from the late 4th century to the early 5th century and the latter half of the 5th century in Yaksu-ri and Susan-ri, belong to the oldest paintings in the DPRK.
Koguryo tomb murals are different in style and rich in content.
They deal with portraits of people and their customs, landscape, animals, objects, flowers, birds, ornamental and symbolic patterns, etc. Typical paintings portraying human images are found in the Mausoleum of King Kogukwon, the tomb in Susan-ri and the Chonwangjisin tomb where a woman is buried. The portraits were portrayed well enough to guess the personalities of the dead. The typical paintings of the people and their customs are in the Mausoleum of King Kogukwon and the Ssanggidung (twin column) tomb.
The conspicuous paintings in the tomb murals of Koguryo are those of four guardians. The animals in the paintings, blue dragon in the east, white tiger in the west, phoenix in the south and mythological turtle in the north, represent their guarding role in all directions.
The tomb murals of Koguryo evolved on the basis of the fine art heritage handed down from the ancient times. Each of them is as perfect as a complete work and captures the imagination of the viewers with a series of scenes. They are drawn in various forms and run through with unique descriptive composition and refined means of formative portrayal, showcasing a high artistic level.
Despite the lapse of thousands of years the tomb murals preserve their original colour. They are precious relics of the country as they show the customs, culture, resourcefulness and artistic talent of the Koguryo people.
Kim Hyon
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