武寧王陵 葬禮過程에서 <設置式 棺>의 檢討

Abstract

The excavation of the tomb of King Muryeong and the discovery of the epitaph in 1971 have become the starting point of research on the mortuary practice of Baekje. However, in-depth studies on the funeral process of the tomb of King Muryeong have not progressed as expected due to the inability to accurately report the investigation. The situation of the excavation of artifacts in the burial chamber is reviewed to analyze the funeral process of the tomb. After identifying the problems of the 1973 report, subsequent restoration plans, the exact location of the excavation, and the location of the coffin inside the tomb are estimated again. Thereby, the installation method of the wooden coffin is reviewed. The coffins of the king and queen were estimated to weigh over 300kg. The entrance of the tomb is narrow and the size of the path and the burial chamber is confined; it is almost impossible to lift a heavy coffin and place it in the royal tomb. Therefore, it is reasonable to view the tomb of King Muryeong as an “installation-style coffin” rather than a “carry-in-style coffin,” and it is believed that the bodies of the king and queen were moved from the temporary burial place and placed in a coffin that had already been placed in the burial chamber. The coffin rings, which were supposed to be handles for carrying the coffin, are too weak to support the weight of carrying the coffin. This inference is supported through the headrest and footrest that have no signs of fixing against vibration during transportation, coffin timbers that have been cut and chamfered inside for easy assembly in a narrow room, and coffin nails that have no striking marks on the head. The coffin is divided into three sections; the body is placed in the middle, and the burial goods are placed in the upper and lower sections. All artifacts outside the wooden coffin are thought to have been used for rituals in the burial chamber. Thus far, there have been several studies on the mortuary practice of the tomb of King Muryeong from the perspective of China's Confucian mortuary practice. However, examining the burial and ritual processes of the Baekje King through excavated artifacts showed that there is a significant difference from the traditional Chinese mortuary practice. The burial of the body in a pre-installed wooden coffin in the burial chamber, and the interior space of the coffin divided into a burial section for the body and spaces for burial goods are considered the traditional funeral practices of Baekje. Even though there is a very high possibility that Baekje was heavily influenced by the mortuary practice in China at the time, it is necessary to examine how readily it was adopted. The change of the burial system does not necessarily coincide with the change of the mortuary practice. In the future, it is hoped that a study of the mortuary practice of Baekje would comprehensively examine the changes in the rituals along with the changes in the burial system.