익산 미륵사지 녹유연목와의 제작기술과 의미

Abstract

The main discussion of this article is focused on the formal characteristics, manufacturing technique, and excavations of the green-glazed Rafter-end tiles excavated at the Mireuksa Temple site. Green-glazed Rafter-end tiles are largely divided into two types, Type A and Type B, according to the shapes of the lotus petals and the edge, of which Type A constitute the great majority. The Type A tiles were made using a tile mold consisting of an “inner mold” to make the part of the tile bearing the ornamental design, and an “outer mold”, while the Type B tiles were made using only an inner mold. The outer mold must have been circular considering the design surrounding the ovary. Studies also suggest that the tiles were baked in a double-firing process. Green glaze was applied only to the ornamental face and the edge. It is believed that the use of green glaze, which began to be applied widely to the ceramic vessels of Baekje in the sixth century and to roof tiles in the seventh century, was influenced by the popularity of green-glazed tiles in Sui and Tang China. The excavation circumstances of the green-glazed Rafter-end tiles discovered at the sites of the galleries, lecture hall and dormitory rather than the sites of the central dharma hall and wooden pagodas are similar to those of Type F-3 and Type G convex Rafter-end tiles, which belong to the “second-stage tiles” of the Mireuksa Style. These second-stage tiles of Type B and Type G are presumed to have been manufactured after 639, as they were discovered in the solum around the stone pagoda in the Western Sanctuary. It suggests that the green-glazed Rafter-end tiles were also made during the same period. Considering the aspects of the Rafter-end tiles and green glaze used in East Asia, it seems that the Rafter-end tiles of Baekje were produced under the influence of the Southern Dynasties of China, as suggested by the convex Rafter-end tiles unearthed at the Daetongsa Temple site. But the tiles began to acquire their own unique form once the local tile makers started manufacturing them, resulting in the popularity of the lotus design without the edge ornament unlike the Chinese tiles. The Rafter-end tiles of Type I and Type II discovered at the Asuka-dera, the earliest Buddhist temple in Japan, show the influence of the Baekje tiles. Green-glazed tiles have been discovered at various archaeological sites, including the Wolseong, Wolji pond and Sacheonwangsa Temple sites in Gyeongju and the Heian Palace site in Japan. Outer tile molds have also been found at several temple sites of Silla and Japan that were founded after the late seventh century. This suggests that the tile manufacturing technology of Baekje continued to influence Silla and Japan even after the fall of the Baekje kingdom in 660.