The Journal of Korean Art and Archaeology

I JOUGWAN AS GOGURYEO HEADDRESS

Writings on Korea are found in official Chinese historical records such as the Shiji (史記: Annals of History), the Hanshu (漢書: Han History), and the Weishu Dongyichuan (魏書 東夷傳: Record of the Foreigners in the East in the Wei History) in the Sanguozhi (三國志: Records of Three Kingdoms). These texts precede even the oldest remaining records in Korea, providing invaluable information about the politics, diplomacy, geography, culture, and customs of ancient Korea.1 In particular, these Chinese records on Korean customs and dress make repeated reference to Goguryeo (37 BC-668) people with feathers on their official headdresses, which indicate that this Goguryeo custom was well known in contemporary China.

The Goguryeo headdress with feathers is first mentioned in the Weishu Dongyichuan, where the chapter on Goguryeo says, “... [the people] wear a headdress named jeolpunggeon (折風巾), which is pointed on top, and has feathers on the sides... there are differences according to one's social status ...”2 Further, the Zhoushu (風書: Zhou History) states, “... men wear long-sleeved jackets and wide trousers, with white leather belts and yellow leather shoes. Their headdress is called golso (骨蘇). It is mostly made of purple silk with intricate gold and silver decorations. The high officials show their status by wearing two feathers in their headdress ...”3 Similar records are also found in the Beishi (北史: History of Northern Dynasties), the Suishu (隋書: Sui History), the Jiu Tangshu (舊唐書: Tang History) and the Xin Tangshu (新唐書: New Tang History).4 Based on such Chinese records, the section of Saekbok (色服: dress codes and color protocols) in the chapter Japji (雜志: Miscellanea) of the Samguksagi (三國史記: History of the Three Kingdoms) by Gim Busik (金富軾), also contains the same description.5

As to Goguryeo's jougwan, Yi Yongbeom (李龍範) already suggested in 1956 that the custom of decorating one's headdress with feathers is related to the animism of Siberian nomadic tribes who worshipped birds,6 which has been widely accepted in the study of the history of dress and ornaments ever since.7 This paper shall not elaborate in detail the widely-known depictions of Goguryeo people wearing jougwan in the tomb murals of Ssang-yeongchong (雙盈塚) and Muyongchong (舞踊塚) (Plates 1 and 2). In the case of the Baekje kingdom, the Zhoushu and the Beishi describe Baekje (18 BC-660) dress as being similar to that of Goguryeo, although in Baekje the feathers were put on the headdress in the presence of the king at official meetings called johoe (朝會: court ceremonies), baerye (拜禮: ritual bows), or jesa (祭祀: ancestral rites); and while playing musical instruments, but not during military events.8 In Silla, too, the influence of the jougwan is found in gold crowns, which, once again, can be traced back to Goguryeo customs.

( Plate 1 ) A man wearing headdress crowned with two feathers Goguryeo, 6th century, wall painting Ssang-yeongchong (雙楹塚), Pyeongyang

( Plate 2 ) A horse rider wearing headdress crowned with two feathers in Ssang-yeongchong Goguryeo, 6th century, wall painting fragment National Museum of Korea, Seoul

The mural painting, Reception of Foreign Envoys depicted on the entrance wall in the tomb of Li Xian (also known as Prince Zhanghuai [章懷太子], 651-684) of the Tang dynasty (618-907), has long drawn academic attention with particular respect to one of the foreign emissaries, who wears two feathers on his headdress, as being of probable Korean origin (Plate 3).9 Li Xian, the second son of Emperor Gaozong (高宗, r. 649-683) and Empress Wu Zetian (則天武后, r. 690-705), died in 684 and was reburied in 706 after Empress Wu's death. Princess Yongtai (永太公主, d. 701) was reburied in the same year and Li Chongrun (李重潤: Crown Prince Yide [懿德太子], 682-701) in 711. All three had died young during the empress's usurpation of the throne. Although a jougwan-styled official headdress had long been considered a characteristic of Goguryeo dress, the emissary in the tomb painting was assumed to have come from Unified Silla as the state of Goguryeo had collapsed in 668, and by the time of Prince Zhanghuai's death, Silla had unified the peninsula. However, it remains unclear whether the mural is based on the actual historical presence of a Silla emissary at his funeral.

( Plate 3 ) A Goguryeo envoy in Reception of Foreign Envoys Chinese, Tang, circa 706, wall painting Tomb of Prince Li Xian (Prince Zhanghuai), near Xi'an

Another example of a Korean emissaries wearing a similar jougwan was found in the mural of Foreign Emissaries (使節圖, Shijietu) in the western wall of Room 1 at the ruined site of a palace in the Afrasiab plateau near Samarkand, Uzbekistan (Plates 4-1 and 4-2). This site is the remains of the ancient kingdom of Sogdiana, known in China as Kangguo (康國), which during the Sui and Tang dynasties flourished as a commercial center on the Silk Road. It is recorded that the Tang emperor Gaozong, during the Yonghui (永徽) era (650-655), appointed the Sogdian king Varxuman (拂呼縵) as governor of Kangju (康居都督),10 and there is an inscription in Sogdian language on the tomb mural that confirms this: “four geese to King Varxuman of the Unasi tribe.”11 Therefore, it would be safe to assume that the mural was completed between the late seventh century and the year 712, when the kingdom was plundered in the wake of the Arab invasion. This mural, thought to have been painted in the mid-seventh century within the private quarters of King Varxuman, contains what appears to be the reception of foreign emissaries from Chaganian of west Tokharia, Turks, Gaochang (高昌) in Central Asia (西域) or China, and India, as well as scenes of religious ceremonies and the paradise of gods to celebrate the glories of the king and to reinforce the king's authority.

( Plate 4-1 ) Outlined envoys in Foreign Emissaries, detail

( Plate 4-2 ) Goguryeo envoys wearing feathered headdresses in Foreign Emissaries Late 7th century-early 8th century, mural Western wall of Room 1, Afrasiab, Samarkand, Uzbekistan

A report on this mural from the former Soviet Union interprets two figures in the mural, wearing round-collared jackets, circle-headed swords, and headdresses with two feathers, as Korean. Like the speculations surrounding Prince Zhanghuai's tomb mural, Kim Won-yong considered the depicted figures as likely to be from Silla, but did not exclude the possibility of them being envoys from Goguryeo.12 Anazawa Wako suggests that the two emissaries wearing jougwan were most likely of Goguryeo origin.13 Based on the characteristics of the Tang Chinese dress depicted in the mural, Anazawa dates the mural to the mid-seventh century coinciding with the rise of Empress Wu Zetian. It was a time when Goguryeo maintained close diplomatic relations with western Chinese states, ever since it dispatched an envoy to Tuque (突厥: Turks) during the Sui (隋) dynasty (581-618). Along similar lines, Roh Taedon (盧太敦) has suggested that the two figures probably were emissaries from Goguryeo who, facing an imminent war with Tang China at the time, were desperate to find military allies in continental Asia.14

It is difficult to conclude at this point whether the figure wearing jougwan in the tomb of Prince Zhanghuai was in fact a visiting emissary from Goguryeo or whether his headdress was depicted as a typical characteristic of Koreans as perceived by contemporary Chinese. However, considering the historical context of the time, contemporary historical records on Goguryeo dress, and the depiction and inscription of people in jougwan in Chinese paintings to be discussed later, it becomes clear that the people portrayed donning jougwan were from Goguryeo rather than Silla.15

II GOGURYEO ENVOYS WEARING JOUGWAN IN DUNHUANG WALL PAINTINGS

The wall paintings of the Dunhuang caves are a rich source of the few surviving paintings of the Tang dynasty. Besides the diverse representations of Buddhist iconography, they provide a rare insight into the religious life of the time as well as the development of pictorial art, such as landscapes and portrait paintings. The depictions of the various figures appearing in narrative Buddhist stories in addition to illustrations of male and female donors provide invaluable historical information on costumes and customs of the time.

Among the many wall paintings of Dunhuang that contain figures wearing jougwan, this paper focuses on three in particular. The first is Cave 220, depicting the paradise of Amitabha on the south wall, the paradise of Bhajsajyaguru on the north, and three Buddhas accompanied by Bodhisattvas on the east, above the entrance.16 Inscriptions on the northern wall and below the central Buddha depicted on the east wall indicate that the cave was completed in the year 642, the sixteenth year of the Zhenguan (貞觀) reign (627-649), and was the votive cave of the Zhai family.17 On either side of the entrance wall, there is a mural that features a scene from the Vimalakirti Sutra in which the Bodhisattva of wisdom, Manjusri (文殊菩薩, Wenshupusa), visits a Buddhist layman Vimalakirti (維摩居士, Weimo jushi), who has fallen ill, and both have entered into a discussion of the purity of the Buddha land and ‘non-duality' in the teachings of the Buddha. Just below the representation of Manjusri on the left, there is a depiction of the audience, including the Tang emperor and his officials. On the right, along with the representation of Vimalakirti, foreign emissaries in various different attires are portrayed, among whom one is wearing a jougwan. Preceded by a small person carrying an offering on a tray over his head, two people in short trousers carrying lotus flowers, and a person in a long Chinese costume, is a person wearing a jougwan decorated with two long feathers (Plate 5). Although further details of the headdress are not clearly recognizable, the features of this person in a blue jacket and wide trousers with his hands gathered together are similar to those of the emissary identified wearing jougwan in the tomb mural of Prince Zhanghuai.

( Plate 5 ) Foreign emissaries attending the debate between Vimalakirti and Manjusri Chinese, Tang 642, wall painting Eastern wall of Dunhuang Cave 220, Gansu

According to the Vimalakirti Sutra, the visit of Manjusri Bodhisattva is said to have been accompanied by many sovereign kings. The mural depicts the Tang emperor flanked by foreign emissaries, who probably represent the sovereigns or envoys of Tang China's peripheral states. Therefore, the Tang emperor and foreign emissaries depicted in the wall paintings should be understood to have gathered to seek an audience to the conversation between Vimalakirti and Manjusri and to listen to the debate on the teachings of the Sutra and to reaffirm faith in Buddhism.

The Zhenguan reign (627-649) under Emperor Taizong is when Tang China built the largest empire to date with the conquest of a number of states in western China, thus succeeding in identifying itself as the center of the universe. Zhang Yanyuan (張彦遠) in his Lidai minghuaji (歷代名畵記: Record of Famous Paintings of Successive Dynasties, 847) records that Taizong commissioned the court painter Yan Liben to paint portraits of visiting foreign emissaries.18 The fact that the wall paintings of Cave 220 show much more detailed illustrations of foreign emissaries than earlier murals of Dunhuang could be understood in the context of this record. Compared to the wall paintings of Caves 420, 314, and 380 from the Sui dynasty that depict scenes from the Vimalakirti Sutra, the wall paintings of Cave 220, which are representative of the early Tang period, exhibit a much more sophisticated composition and finer, more dynamic illustrations of the figures.19 In particular, the depiction of the emperor in his red garb with the imperial crown shows similarity in dress and crown with the portrait of Emperor Wendi (文帝, r. 581-604) of the Sui dynasty by Yan Liben, now housed in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Therefore, the portraits in Dunhuang murals, which are contemporary with Yan Liben, are an invaluable source for the study of portrait paintings of that era.20

The Xuanhehuapu (宣和畵譜: Catalog of Paintings during the Xuanhe Era) records that Yan Liben worked on two portraits of Vimalakirti,21 which suggests that the Dunhuang murals were probably influenced by Yan's paintings, and that the new style of painting apparent in these murals emerged at that time.

Another example of the foreign emissary wearing jougwan is found in the wall painting of Cave 335 in Dunhuang (Plate 6). This cave postdates Cave 220 as identified by the inscription “Chuigong (垂拱) second year” (686) on the east wall.22 The scene of Manjusri visiting Vimalakirti from the Vimalakirti Sutra covers the whole of the north wall of this cave and is known to be the largest in scale among such scenes illustrated in the Dunhuang caves.

( Plate 6 ) Foreign envoys on the northern wall of Dunhuang Cave 335 Chinese, Tang 686, wall painting

Here, two people with feathers on their headdresses are portrayed just below Vimalakirti on the right, above the other visiting sovereigns. The two figures appear to be in conversation with one another. Their headdresses with two feathers are fastened by a wide headband run over both ears and tied in a bow under the chin. Although the painting is dark and it is difficult to recognize the details, these figures certainly wear the similar shape of jougwan depicted on the mural painting in the tomb of Prince Zhanghuai in Xi'an.

Duan Wenjie (段文杰), formerly Director of the Dunhuang Research Institute (敦煌文物硏究所) has already noted the illustration of a person with jougwan in the wall painting of Vimalakirti and Manjusri in Dunhuang Cave 220,23 and Gwon Yeong-pil (權寧弼) has also written about the two people wearing jougwan in the mural of Cave 335.24 Compared to the scene depicted in Cave 220, the scene in Cave 335 has a more complicated, albeit similar, composition, and is more stylized in detail. This raises the possibility that there was an original version of this subject matter before the mid-seventh century on which the painting of Cave 335 was based, or that it was modeled on the painting in Cave 220 with some added variations. As the painting in Cave 335 is dated to 686, many years after the collapse of Goguryeo, it is conceivable that the Korean emissaries depicted were from Silla. However, if the painting is indeed based on the earlier model in Cave 220, it would make sense that the Koreans in cave 335 wearing Goguryeo-style garb represent emissaries from Goguryeo. As these foreign guests in the wall paintings were depicted as representatives of neighboring states attending the conversation between the retinues of Bodhisattva Manjusri and Vimalakirti along with the Tang emperor, it is possible to conjecture that the Koreans among them were portrayed in Goguryeo outfits based on the typical image of Koreans held by the Chinese, even sometime after the collapse of the Goguryeo state.

This hypothesis carries more weight when we consider two factors: first, it is unlikely that Silla would feature in Tang cave paintings as one of the peripheral states of Tang; second, there is no known Chinese record of Silla people wearing jougwan, whereas the jougwan had been regularly recorded in ancient Chinese texts as a feature of Goguryeo dress. The Korean emissary in the tomb mural of Prince Zhanghuai can also be understood in the same way. As there is no evidence that the mural depicts an actual historical event, it is more likely that the emissary was portrayed according to the typical image of Koreans held by the Chinese, rather than based on a clear distinction of outfits between Goguryeo and Silla. Lastly, I have added another example of Goguryeo envoys wearing the same jougwan on the north wall of Cave 332, dated to 698 (Plate 7).25 They are present in the same scene painted in a near-identical composition and style, as seen on the north wall of Cave 335. This particular depiction has only been reproduced in a brief sketch and is only partially visible behind the big Buddha triad on the same north wall.26 However, I noted their presence in cave 332 during a workshop in Dunhuang in the summer of 2003 and reconfirmed my views during my recent visit to Dunhuang in June, 2008.

( Plate 7 ) Foreign envoys, from the painting on the northern wall of Dunhuang Cave 332 Chinese, Tang 698, wall painting

After Dunhuang was occupied by the Tibetan state, Tufan (吐蕃), in the late eighth century, paintings of Vimalakirti Sutra continued to be commissioned. In those murals, the king of Tufan is depicted in his traditional garb but Goguryeo figures wearing jougwan are not found among the foreign emissaries.27 However, a painting of the Vimalakirti Sutra on silk, now a part of the Stein Collection in the British Museum, shows the Tibetan king at the front of the foreign emissaries and a Goguryeo person appears to be wearing jougwan at the left side of the painting. The two feathers on the headdress are arranged in a similar way as those illustrated on the wall in Cave 220 (Plate 8, see also Plate 5 for comparison).28 Apparently, the motif of foreign envoys produced in the seventh century seems to have continued into the late eighth century.

( Plate 8 ) Foreign Envoys, detail of the Vimalakirti Sutra Chinese, Tang, late 8th Century, ink and color on silk British Museum (Stein Collection 57 Ch.00350) Image from Roderick Whitfield, The Art of Central Asia: The Stein Collection in the British Museum, vol. I, Tokyo: Kodansha International, 1982, pl. 20.

III GOGURYEO ENVOY DEPICTED ON SCROLL PAINTINGS IN THE NATIONAL PALACE MUSEUM, TAIPEI

Two scroll paintings in the National Palace Museum of Taipei lend further credence to the suggestion that the Korean emissaries wearing jougwan in the Dunhuang wall paintings were of Goguryeo origin. One is Emperor Taizong Meeting with Foreign Envoys by Yan Liben of Tang (唐閻立本王會圖, Tang Yan Liben Wanghuitu, hereafter “Wanghuitu”), which portrays twenty-six foreign emissaries in color on silk along with the names of their respective countries. The other scroll, Foreign Envoys Paying Tribute to Emperor Yuandi of Liang State copied by Gu Deqian of Southern Tang (南唐顧德謙摹梁元帝蕃客入朝圖, NanTang Gu Deqian mo Liang Yuandi Fanke ruchaotu, hereafter “Fanke ruchaotu”), which is an ink drawing copied by Gu Deqian, depicts thirty-one foreign emissaries.29 These two works include emissaries from Goguryeo, Baekje, and Silla, among whom only the emissary from Goguryeo is wearing jougwan.30 In Wanghuitu, a Goguryeo emissary appears in a red jacket, wide green trousers with red trim, and a headdress decorated with feathers secured to the head with a band (Plate 9). Fanke ruchaotu also depicts a Goguryeo emissary, painted only in ink, wearing a headdress with two feathers (Plate 10). These two pictures are significant in that both contain an inscription that defines the emissaries wearing jougwan as being from Goryeo (高麗 which means Goguryeo [高句麗] then).

( Plate 9 ) Foreign emissaries from Emperor Taizong Meeting with Foreign Envoys painted by Yan Liben of Tang Chinese, Tang, 8th century or later copy, color on silk National Palace Museum, Taipei, Taiwan

( Plate 10 ) Foreign emissaries including a Goguryeo envoy, from Foreign Envoys Paying Tribute to the Emperor Yuandi of Liang Dynasty, copied by Gu Deqian of Southern Tang Chinese, Five Dynasties, 10th century, ink on paper National Palace Museum, Taipei, Taiwan

Although it is difficult to date these paintings with precision, they are undoubtedly copies of the original Painting of Tribute Bearers to the Liang State (梁職貢圖, Liang zhigong tu), such as the one in the Nanjing Museum. Copies of artwork can in some cases prove to be a valuable source of information for the missing originals. Furthermore, these scroll paintings give a glimpse of the international nature of Tang culture of the time. Wanghuitu is dated to the late seventh century or is possibly a later copy, while Fanke ruchaotu dates to the tenth century. The fact that foreign emissaries of similar attire appear in many Dunhuang wall paintings highlights that the tradition of making copies was in practice for quite some time. Furthermore, the reason that the Dunhuang wall paintings contain only Goguryeo emissaries wearing jougwan demonstrates that this was the typical Chinese image of Koreans even after the collapse of the Goguryeo state.

IV GOGURYEO PEOPLE ON THE COVER OF A SIX-LOBED SILVER BOX, AND TWO SARIRA RELIQUARIES

The two scroll paintings in Taipei strongly indicate that the foreign emissaries wearing jougwan depicted in the wall paintings of Prince Zhanghuai's tomb, the Dunhuang caves, and the Sogdian palace were also from Goguryeo. In a similar vein, further details of Goguryeo people can be seen in other forms of Tang Chinese art. In 1979, a small silver box was excavated in Xi'an, near the grounds of Jiaotong University (文通大學). The silver box, now housed in the Bureau of Cultural Relics and Gardens (文物園林局) in Xi'an, was introduced in 1984 as Duguan qigeguo liuban yinhe (部管七箇國六瓣銀盒: Six-lobed silver box representing seven neighboring states under Chinese governance).31 It has also been displayed in the exhibition, Hidden Treasures of Chang'an in Japan in 1992 (Plate 11-1).32 Inside the lobe on the lid of this silver box are portrayed people wearing jougwan with an inscription 高麗國 next to them, providing essential information of the nationality of the people with feathers on their headdress (Plate 11-2).33

( Plate 11-1 ) Six-lobed silver box representing seven neighboring states under Chinese governance Chinese, Tang, late 7th to early 8th centuries Discovered from Baoyingsi temple site in Xi'an in 1979 H: 5 cm, W: 7.5 cm, Weight: 121 g Office of Culture and Garden in Xi'an

( Plate 11-2 ) Five Goguryeo people wearing hat crowned with two feathers and inscription of “Goryeo State,” 高麗國, detail Photograph by Felix Schoeber

The lid of the silver box is in the form of six oval-shaped petals with a pointed hexagonal compartment in the center. Against a background of eojamun (魚子文: punched ring patterns), each compartment has embossed images of neighboring states identified by names such as Poluomenguo (婆羅門國), Tufanguo (土蕃國), Shuleguo (疏勒國), Gaoliguo (高麗國), Baituo􀆶guo (白拓􀆶國), and Niaomanguo (鳥蠻國) with Kunlunwangguo (崑崙王國) at the center. In the seventh century, these neighboring states were under the political influence of the Tang empire, as confirmed by the inscription of 部管七箇國 (duguan qigeguo meaning seven states under governance) in the middle of the lid, and 將來 (jianglai meaning brought [as tribute]). The inscriptions conform to historical facts of territorial expansion undertaken by Tang and the practice of establishing regional governing posts in the neighboring states of the great Tang empire. Under the reign of Emperor Taizong and Gaozong, the Tang empire occupied the largest territory in its history and established its governing bodies, such as Anxi Duhufu (安西都護府) in Kashgar (疏勒) in the farthest west, Yingzhou Dudufu (營州都督府) in the northeast, and Andong Duhufu (安東都護府) in Pyeongyang, the capital city of Goguryeo, which was later moved to Liaodong (遼東).

Turning to the details of the seven compartments on the lid of the silver box, one finds the following. In the hexagonal compartment at the centre, along with the inscription duguan qigeguo and Kunlunwangguo (崑崙王國) on its right side, six people in total are embossed including one riding an elephant in the center followed by another person holding a parasol high over him as well as the mahout sitting on the elephant's head. They are wearing short dresses that only cover their waists, suggesting that they come from a warm region. Kunlun refers to a tribe of people with dark skin color, as recorded in the Nanmanzhuan (南蠻傳: Record of Barbarians in the South) in the Jiu Tangshu: “the people with curly hair and dark skin in the south of Linyi (林邑) are generally called Kunlun.”34 The term seems loosely to refer to the Malays who lived scattered around the south Pacific and at the time possibly formed a small kingdom in a region between present day Sri Lanka (獅子國) and Canton (廣州).35

Inside the oblong compartment facing the elephant in the centre are five people wearing headdresses decorated with two long rabbit ear-shaped feathers – apparently jougwan – along with the inscription 高麗國. With a person slightly bigger in size on the left and the other four people facing him, all five people are clearly wearing jougwan of Goguryeo. As already mentioned above, the Goguryeo outfit is typically described in old Chinese records as a long-sleeved jacket with wide trousers, a leather belt, leather shoes, and a headdress decorated with feathers as seen on this silver box.

In the petal to the right, the name of a state (白拓口國) is inscribed next to two people. An old man is sitting on a large, rectangular-shaped woven straw mat to the left, with a boy to the right presenting an offering to him. The name of the state has not been identified as the third character is missing.36 In the next petal to the right, under the inscription 鳥蠻國 are two people with their hair in topknots standing with backpacks on the left, and on the right three people seem to be receiving guests while standing. Niaoman (鳥蠻) is related to a contemporaneous tribe called Nanzhao (南詔), referring to a state, which existed in the northwestern region of Vietnam or the eastern region of Myanmar.37

The next petal has an inscription of 婆羅門國, which seems to refer to today's India. On the left stands a monk in his robe, holding a cane, and on the right are two people seemingly having a conversation with a long bottle between them. The bottle has a narrow neck and a round body with something long sticking out of its mouth. The scene seems to depict a certain religious ceremony.

The next petal to the right illustrates 土蕃國, present-day Tibet. Two people are herding a yak, which is dashing forward at a gallop. This seems to symbolize the wildness of the Tibetan plateau. Tufan (土蕃) maintained a special relationship with Tang since 641, in the reign of Emperor Taizong, when a Tang princess Wencheng married the Tibetan emperor, and introduced Buddhism to that country.

The last petal is engraved 疏勒國, today's Kashgar, where Anxi Duhufu was placed in the wake of Taizong's western expedition. Two people are standing on the right holding long swords and, on the left, is one person holding a sword and another, a bow, illustrating the militaristic ethos of the west Chinese tribes.

This silver box was previously thought to have been used to contain perfumery or medicine on the assumption that it was found in the grounds of Xingqing Palace (興慶宮). However, as the excavation site was recently confirmed as the site of Baoyingsi (宝[寶]應寺: Baoying Temple) founded in 767 and which once stood in front of the palace, the decoration on the box is now assumed to be depicting the distribution of sariras.38

Among the artifacts displayed during the exhibition Hidden Treasures of Chang'an in Japan was yet another example of Goguryeo people wearing jougwan. It is a reliquary for sariras made of marble, found in 1990 in the historic site of Fachi-si (法池寺), a Tang Temple located in Caiguaicun (蔡拐村), Lantian (藍田), Shaanxi Province (陕西省).

This marble casket, 33 cm long on all sides, portrays two people wearing feathers on their headdresses, sitting with other foreign guests (Plate 12-1).39 The scene depicts the distribution of sariras (舍利分配圖). In front of a person with a crown sitting inside a building with a rounded roof, an old man with a topknot and short trousers is portrayed as if he is taking something out of a big jar, probably a relic container. In front are three people sitting on each side, among whom, on the left, are two people wearing jougwan next to a short man who is probably from western China or Kunlun. On the right are two people wearing hats and an old man with a beard. These visiting foreigners seem to be sitting there to receive sariras taken from the jar. Further, a series of scenes such as the carrying of sariras on an elaborately decorated vessel (Plate 12-2), the burial of sariras in deep mountains, and the reception of sariras in a remote fortress are carved in low relief on the other three sides of this reliquary.

( Plate 12-1 ) Reliquary for sarira Chinese, Tang late 7-8th century, marble Unearthed at the temple site of Fachi-si, Caiguancun, Lantian, Shaanxi Province in 1990 H: 32 cm, W: 32 cm, Depth: 32 cm Cultural Relics Center of Lantian, Shaanxi

( Plate 12-2 ) Placement of sariras into a Jar, one side of the reliquary

The style of the relief carving on the casket indicates that it dates from the early Tang and the foreign guests depicted on this marble reliquary share similar features with the figures illustrated in the silver box discussed above.40 Therefore, it is possible to conclude that the people wearing jougwan were also from Goguryeo who were included among the guests to receive sariras from the neighboring states of Tang. This assumption is further supported by the fact that an outer stone casket for a sarira reliquary in the Sumitomo collection, Senoku Hakukokan (泉屋博古館), Kyoto, known to have been brought from Shandong area in China, also shows three emissaries from Goguryeo in its depiction on all four sides of foreign envoys receiving sariras (Plate 13). The inscription on one side of the casket reads “Qianyuan Xiaoyi Huangdi baguo deng” (乾元孝義皇帝八國王等: Qianyuan reign of Emperor Xiaoyi and Kings of Eight States), alluding to the scene related to the distribution of the sariras to eight nations after the cremation of the Buddha. As the Qianyuan reign covers the period between 758 and 760, the date of this casket is of the mid-eighth century.41

( Plate 13 ) Outer casket for sarira reliquary Chinese, Tang, 758-760, limestone H: 65.6 cm, W: 45.6 cm, Depth: 61.4 cm Sumitomo Collection Senoku Hakukokan, Kyoto, Japan

V THE EXISTENCE OF LESSER GOGURYEO

It is written in Tang records that the Goguryeo refugees stayed in the Liaodong region until the early ninth century and were governed under the lineage of Bojangwang (寳藏王: Silla king, r. 677-682) who had been appointed by the Tang Emperor. It is now time to look into the historic context in more detail.

A number of Chinese historical texts record the fact that after Goguryeo's collapse in 668, refugees settled in the Liaodong region, where the state persisted in another form in the area under the protection of Tang. While the Jiu Tangshu only records the history of Goguryeo until the time of Empress Wu Zetian,42 the Xin Tangshu states that a reconstituted Goryeo (meaning Goguryeo) existed in Liaodong as a peripheral state of Tang until it was absorbed into Balhae (渤海, 698-927; Chinese: Bohai), which was founded by a Goguryeo descendant, Daejoyeong (大祚榮, r. 699-719).43 The Samguksagi records the same facts in the chapter on Goguryeo.44

From this viewpoint, when it comes to Tang artists' propensity to draw images of Koreans paying tribute to Tang in the manner of Goguryeo people wearing jougwan, the following argument can be laid out.

In the wake of the collapse of Goguryeo in 668, refugees were scattered over various areas. Unified Silla absorbed some of them, while captured officials and members of the Goguryeo royal family lived in Chang'an (present Xi'an). Others joined the Tang military to protect the western frontiers or were dispersed across China. Some people became a part of Balhae as it established itself into a new state while others joined ethnic tribes in Liaodong and nomadic Mongolia. There were also some who went to Japan. This paper is primarily interested in the refugees in Liaodong.45

After the fall of Goguryeo, Tang established the satellite regime of Andong Duhufu in Pyeongyang, with ambitions to rule the old territory of Goguryeo as well as Silla. But Silla put up a fierce resistance both by land and sea. When Goguryeo refugees in Liaodong sought to re-establish their state, Silla and Tang gathered forces to crush the movement. However, after their joint victory, Silla and Tang came into conflict again and this led Tang to relocate permanently its satellite governing post from Pyeongyang to Liaodong in 676. After that date, Goguryeo refugees in Liaodong were granted a broader range of autonomy, although they remained as Tang subjects and under Tang control.

In order to strengthen the governance of the Goguryeo refugees in Liaodong, Tang appointed in 677 Gaozang (高藏: Bojangwang, the last king of fallen Goguryeo) as the governor of Liaodong as well as the king of the refugees. Tang also had Goguryeo refugees who had previously been sent to inner Tang territory in 669 relocated to the area. Bojangwang's jurisdiction fell well within the control of Andong Duhufu, a title given to the head of a peripheral tribe rather than an official of the Tang empire. Therefore, Bojangwang was a symbolic head of Goguryeo refugees within the hierarchy of Andong Duhufu. Despite Tang's efforts to maintain its stronghold in Liaodong, it proved to be a difficult task. Tang appointed Go Bowon (高寶元, dates of birth and death unknown), Bojangwang's grandson, new king of the peripheral state in 686 in the wake of the discovery of Bojangwang's collusion with the Mohe (靺鞨) tribe. In 698 Tang appointed Go Bowon zhongcheng guowang (忠誠國王: loyal king) with a view toward maintaining control over the Goguryeo migrants in Liaodong, but to no avail. However, Tang China was still able to maintain indirect control of Liaodong through granting the Goguryeo's royal family exile in the capital, Chang'an.

In 699, Tang downgraded Andong Duhufu to Andong Dudufu (都督府) and appointed Bojangwang's son, Go Deokmu (咼德武, dates of birth and death unknown), as governor. Hino Kaizaburo (日野開三郞) considers this point in time as the start of the state of Lesser Goguryeo (小高句麗) that was led by Goguryeo's royal family.46 It is generally considered that the new state could have survived due to the fact that the Liaodong region played the role as a buffer between Tang and Balhae, which was established in 698, following a series of military conflicts in the region.47 Moreover, Tang selected another colonial government of Xiongjin (熊津) Dudufu in Jian'an (建安) of Liaodong to govern the refugees of Baekje, appointing Prince Buyeoryung (夫餘隆) of Baekje as the Governor King Daifang (熊津都督帶方郡王). But Prince Buyeoryung died in 682 while in exile in Goguryeo.48

Moreover, it is recorded that in 725 the King of Goguryeo as well as Governor King Daifang of Baekje were present in the religious ceremony of Emperor Xuanzong (玄宗) as officials of peripheral localities (內臣之蕃, neichen zhifan).49 This suggests that Goguryeo was considered as a locality of the Tang empire inhabited by ethnic minorities. In contrast, the same text records Tuque, Japan, and Silla as peripheral states paying tribute (朝獻之國, chaoxian zhiguo), indicating that they were autonomous states, albeit under the political influence of Tang.

Goguryeo's tributary mission toward the end of the Yuanhe (元和 806-821) reign is recorded in the Xin Tangshu,50 which the Samguksagi correspondingly records as having taken place in the year 818.51 This suggests that the state of Lesser Goguryeo was established in Liaodong and that it had a semi-autonomous status, paying tribute to Tang until the early-ninth century. Lesser Goguryeo was, however, absorbed into Balhae during the reign of its tenth king, Daeinsu (大仁秀, r. 813-840).

In summary, Tang seems to have paid respect to the royal family of Goguryeo by appointing Go Bowon as King of Goguryeo in 686, and Go Deokmu as the governor representing Goguryeo refugees. But Tang in fact kept them both in Chang'an in order to maintain indirect control of Liaodong. Roh Taedon's analysis summarizes well the peripheral status of Lesser Goguryeo: the members of the royal family in exile were used to keep up the imperial appearances of the Tang dynasty and reinforce its authority. In other words, they were asked to appear in official ceremonies to manifest externally to the kings of vassal states the power and benevolence of imperial China, and internally to show Tang subjects the imperial dominance and charismatic influence of the moral Son of Heaven (天子, tianzi) over its numerous neighboring states.52

VI CONCLUSION

This paper has considered Goguryeo's presence from the late seventh century to the early-ninth century as a peripheral vassal state of Tang. Some of the remaining refugees of Goguryeo served the Tang military and contributed to the Tang expedition as far as to Sogdiana as led by the General Gao Xianzhi (Go Seonji, 高仙芝, d. 755), who was himself a Korean from Goguryeo. On the other hand, the Goguryeo people also played an important political role in Liaodong, maintaining a complex diplomatic relationship with the neighboring states of Qidan (契丹), Tuque, and Mohe, and establishing a new state of Balhae at the end of the seventh century.

Returning to the discussion on the portraits of people wearing jougwan, this paper proposed that the wall paintings in Dunhuang Caves 220, 335, and 332 are likely to have depicted emissaries of Goguryeo, a powerful neighboring state, in the presence of the Tang emperor. Before its fall, Goguryeo was the strongest of the Three Kingdoms and had fought against the Chinese armies of Sui Yangdi and Tang Taizong and had defeated them. Therefore it seems to be natural that even after Goguryeo fell in 668, the Tang Chinese still continued to keep in their minds the Goguryeo envoy with feathered hat as a stereotypical image of Koreans. It is therefore likely that the tomb murals or wall paintings were either based on a model of well-established images at the time or were copied after the event, rather than the artists' keen understanding of history or political knowledge regarding the neighboring states.

The fact that even after the collapse of Goguryeo, the remaining royal descendants were appointed to rule Liaodong in the form of a peripheral state of the Tang empire strongly suggests that the artists of the time were likely to have depicted Goguryeo people as emissaries from neighboring states. In particular, the silver box of Xi'an and the two scrolls Wanghuitu by Yan Liben and Fanke ruchaotu copied by Gu Deqian in Taipei clearly state in the inscription that the people in jougwan are from Goguryeo. This recognition in the appearance of Goguryeo people with the characteristic feature of the feathered hat, also applies to the identification of the figures with jougwan at the scene of the distribution of sariras to neighboring kings carved on the stone reliquary in Senoku Hakukokan.