경주 쪽샘 44호분 축조실험의 일환으로 7월 17일부터 19일까지 3일간, 쪽샘유적발굴관(경북 경주시)에서 「경주 쪽샘 44호분 장례 재현식」을 개최한다. 행사 장소는 쪽샘유적발굴관, 경주시 태종로 788이다.
신라 왕족의 어린 여성(공주)의 무덤으로 추정되는 ‘쪽샘 44호분’은 비단벌레 날개로 만든 말다래 등 800여 점의 유물이 출토된 신라의 대표 돌무지덧널무덤이다.
연구소는 지난 2014년부터 2023년까지 발굴조사와 학제 간 연구를 실시하여, 무덤 축조의 전 과정과 기술을 밝혀낸 바 있으며, 2024년부터는 10년간의 조사·연구 성과를 바탕으로 다시 무덤을 쌓아보는 축조실험을 진행하고 있다. 이는 세계 고고학사적으로도 유례를 찾기 힘든 실험으로 많은 주목을 받고 있다.
연구소는 현재 목조구조물과 2중 덧널을 설치하고 그 사이에 돌을 쌓아 시신이 안치되는 높이 2m 지점까지 축조를 완료하였으며, 이는 무덤을 만드는 21단계 전체 공정 중 9단계에 해당한다.
이번 장례 재현식은 무덤을 만드는 과정에서 가장 중요한 순간이라고 할 수 있는 10단계(시신·부장품 안치), 11단계(제단(祭壇) 설치 및 의례), 12단계(안쪽 덧널 뚜껑 덮기)에 해당하는 과정이다. 특히, 시신과 부장품이 안치된 안쪽 덧널의 뚜껑을 닫는 것은 장례식의 마지막 단계로, 연구소는 고증 조사를 통해 확인한 바와 동일하게 13매의 판재, 48개의 꺾쇠, 5매의 가로 방향 목재(띠장)를 사용해 덧널 뚜껑을 조립하고, 양 끝(마구리)에 틀(울거미)을 짜서 견고하게 보강하였다. 조립 후 무게가 무려 500kg에 달하는 이 뚜껑의 가장자리에는 10개의 손잡이(축금구)를 달아 재현하였다.
아울러 무덤 주인공이 착장하거나 주변에 부장한 유물과 똑같이 제작한 여러 재현품을 놓아 보고, 시신과 부장품을 안치하는 방법과 순서를 검토해 본다. 이와 함께 고대 안료 ‘주(朱)’와 ‘돌비늘(운모, 雲母)’을 흩뿌리거나 토제(土製) 방울을 흔드는 의례 행위를 실제로 재현해 봄으로써 신라인의 구체적인 장례 풍습과 매장 관념을 생생히 살펴볼 예정이다.
장례 재현식은 제헌절인 7월 17일(금) 오후 5시부터 약 한 시간 동안 진행될 예정이며, 7월 18일(토)과 19일(일) 이틀간 총 12회(10:00, 11:00, 14:00, 15:00, 16:00, 17:00)에 걸쳐 축조실험과 장례식에 대한 상세한 해설을 듣는 공개 설명회(회당 30분)를 진행한다. 이번 행사는 관심 있는 국민이라면 누구나 사전 신청 없이 참가할 수 있다.
국립문화유산연구원 국립경주문화유산연구소는 앞으로도 쪽샘 44호분 축조실험의 모든 과정을 쪽샘유적발굴관에서 공개하는 한편, 다양한 학술행사를 통해 국민 및 학계와 긴밀히 소통하여 신라 고분 문화의 실체를 밝혀나갈 것이다.
The Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage (Director Lim Seung-kyung), which operates under the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage of the Korea Heritage Service, will present the Reenactment of a Silla Funerary Rite at Jjoksaem Tomb No. 44 from July 17 to 19 at the Jjoksaem Archaeological Exhibition Hall as part of the construction experiment for the tomb.
Venue: Jjoksaem Archaeological Exhibition Hall, 788 Taejong-ro, Gyeongju
Jjoksaem Tomb No. 44, believed to be the burial place of a young female member of the Silla royal family, possibly a princess, is a major example of Silla’s stone-mound wooden-chamber tombs. More than 800 artifacts were recovered from the tomb, including horse mudguards decorated with jewel beetle wings.
Note: A stone-mound wooden-chamber tomb is a distinctive Silla tomb type constructed by piling stones around a timber burial chamber and covering the structure with an earthen mound. Horse mudguards are panels suspended beneath a saddle to protect the rider’s legs from mud thrown up by the horse’s hooves.
From 2014 to 2023, the Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage conducted excavations and interdisciplinary research that shed light on the tomb’s entire construction process and the techniques used to build it. Since 2024, the institute has been conducting a construction experiment based on the findings of this decade-long research program, rebuilding the tomb to examine how it was originally constructed. As the only experiment of its kind in the history of world archaeology, it has attracted considerable attention.
The construction experiment has now completed Stage 9 of the tomb’s 21-stage construction process. A wooden framework and a double-layered wooden chamber have now been installed, and the stone mound has been built up to a height of 2 meters, the level at which the deceased will be placed.
The reenactment will cover three key stages in the construction of Jjoksaem Tomb No. 44: Stage 10, placing the deceased and grave goods in the chamber; Stage 11, setting up the altar and performing the burial rites; and Stage 12, closing the inner chamber with its lid. Together, these stages constitute the most significant phase in the tomb’s construction.
Replicas faithfully reproduced from the artifacts worn by the deceased or deposited nearby will be arranged in the chamber to examine how the deceased and grave goods were placed and in what sequence. The reenactment will also recreate ritual acts such as scattering ju and mica flakes and shaking clay bells. These activities will provide insight into Silla funerary customs and beliefs associated with burial.
Note: Ju is a red pigment that was scattered or applied to the walls and floors of ancient tombs. It is believed to have been associated with elixirs of immortality or with warding off evil spirits. Mica is a silicate mineral that splits into thin, scale-like sheets. In Silla tombs, it has often been found scattered around the deceased or bound together in multiple layers.
The funerary rite concludes when the lid is placed over the inner wooden chamber containing the deceased and grave goods. Its lid was assembled from 13 wooden planks, fastened with 48 iron clamps and 5 transverse timbers (ttijang), and reinforced with wooden frames (ulgeomi) fitted across the end faces (maguri). Weighing approximately 500 kilograms when fully assembled, the lid was fitted with ten handles (chukgeumgu) along its edges for carrying and placing it over the chamber.
The reenactment will begin at 5:00 p.m. on July 17, Korea’s Constitution Day, and last approximately one hour. On July 18 and 19, a total of 12 public heritage interpretation sessions on the construction experiment and funerary rite will be offered at 10:00 and 11:00 a.m., and at 2:00, 3:00, 4:00, and 5:00 p.m. Each session will last 30 minutes. The event is open to all, and no advance registration is required.
The Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage will continue to make every stage of the construction experiment for Jjoksaem Tomb No. 44 accessible to the public at the Jjoksaem Archaeological Exhibition Hall. Through a range of academic events and interdisciplinary exchanges, the institute will continue to advance research into Silla tomb culture.
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