• Journal of Korean Society of Forest Science
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• v.22 no.1
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• pp.19-48
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• 1974

Land was originally communized by a community in the primitive society of Korea, and in the age of the ancient society SAM KUK-SILLA, KOKURYOE and PAEK JE-it was distributed under the principle of land-nationalization. But by the occupation of the lands which were permitted to transmit from generation to generation as Royal Grant Lands and newly cleared lands, the private occupation had already begun to be formed. Thus the private ownership of land originated by chiefs of the tribes had a trend to be gradually pervaded to the communal members. After the, SILLA Kingdom unified SAM KUK in 668 A.D., JEONG JEON System and KWAN RYO JEON System, which were the distribution systems of farmlands originated from the TANG Dynasty in China, were enforced to established the basis of an absolute monarchy. Even in this age the forest area was jointly controlled and commonly used by village communities because of the abundance of area and stocked volume, and the private ownership of the forest land was prohibited by law under the influence of the TANG Dynasty system. Toward the end of the SILLA Dynasty, however, as its centralism become weak, the tendency of the private occupancy of farmland by influential persons was expanded, and at the same time the occupancy of the forest land by the aristocrats and Buddhist temples began to come out. In the ensuing KORYO Dynasty (519 to 1391 A.D.) JEON SI KWA System under the principle of land-nationalization was strengthened and the privilege of tax collection was transferred to the bureaucrats and the aristocrats as a means of material compensation for them. Taking this opportunity the influential persons began to expand their lands for the tax collection on a large scale. Therefore, about in the middle of 11th century the farmlands and the forest lands were annexed not only around the vicinity of the capital but also in the border area by influential persons. Toward the end of the KORYO Dynasty the royal families, the bureaucrats and the local lords all possessed manors and occupied the forest lands on a large scale as a part of their farmlands. In the KORYO Dynasty, where national economic foundation was based upon the lands, the disorder of the land system threatened the fall of the Dynasty and so the land reform carried out by General YI SEONG-GYE had led to the creation of ensuing YI Dynasty. All systems of the YI Dynasty were substantially adopted from those of the KORYO Dynasty and thereby KWA JEON System was enforced under the principle of land-nationalization, while the occupancy or the forest land was strictly prohibited, except the national or royal uses, by the forbidden item in KYEONG JE YUK JEON SOK JEON, one of codes provided by the successive kings in the YI Dynasty. Thus the basis of the forest land system through the YI Dynasty had been established, while the private forest area possessed by influential persons since the previous KORYO Dynasty was preserved continuously under the influence of their authorities. Therefore, this principle of the prohibition was nothing but a legal fiction for the security of sovereign powers. Consequently the private occupancy of the forest area was gradually enlarged and finally toward the end of YI Dynasty the privately possessed forest lands were to be officially authorized. The forest administration systems in the YI Dynasty are summarized as follows: a) KEUM SAN and BONG SAN. Under the principle of land-nationalization by a powerful centralism KWA JEON System was established at the beginning of the YI Dynasty and its government expropriated all the forests and prohibited strictly the private occupation. In order to maintain the dignity of the royal capital, the forests surounding capital areas were instituted as KEUM SAN (the reserved forests) and the well-stocked natural forest lands were chosen throughout the nation by the government as BONG SAN(national forests for timber production), where the government nominated SAN JIK(forest rangers) and gave them duties to protect and afforest the forests. This forest reservation system exacted statute labors from the people of mountainious districts and yet their commons of the forest were restricted rigidly. This consequently aroused their strong aversion against such forest reservation, therefore those forest lands were radically spoiled by them. To settle this difficult problem successive kings emphasized the preservation of the forests repeatedly, and in KYEONG KUK DAI JOEN, the written constitution of the YI Dynasty, a regulation for the forest preservation was provided but the desired results could not be obtained. Subsequently the split of bureaucrats with incessant feuds among politicians and scholars weakened the centralism and moreover, the foreign invasions since 1592 made the national land devasted and the rural communities impoverished. It happned that many wandering peasants from rural areas moved into the deep forest lands, where they cultivated burnt fields recklessly in the reserved forest resulting in the severe damage of the national forests. And it was inevitable for the government to increase the number of BONG SAN in order to solve the problem of the timber shortage. The increase of its number accelerated illegal and reckless cutting inevitably by the people living mountainuos districts and so the government issued excessive laws and ordinances to reserve the forests. In the middle of the 18th century the severe feuds among the politicians being brought under control, the excessive laws and ordinances were put in good order and the political situation became temporarily stabilized. But in spite of those endeavors evil habitudes of forest devastation, which had been inveterate since the KORYO Dynasty, continued to become greater in degree. After the conclusion of "the Treaty of KANG WHA with Japan" in 1876 western administration system began to be adopted, and thereafter through the promulgation of the Forest Law in 1908 the Imperial Forests were separated from the National Forests and the modern forest ownership system was fixed. b) KANG MU JANG. After the reorganization of the military system, attaching importance to the Royal Guard Corps, the founder of the YI Dynasty, TAI JO (1392 to 1398 A.D.) instituted the royal preserves-KANG MU JANG-to attain the purposes for military training and royal hunting, prohibiting strictly private hunting, felling and clearing by the rural inhabitants. Moreover, the tyrant, YEON SAN (1495 to 1506 A.D.), expanded widely the preserves at random and strengthened its prohibition, so KANG MU JANG had become the focus of the public antipathy. Since the invasion of Japanese in 1592, however, the innovation of military training methods had to be made because of the changes of arms and tactics, and the royal preserves were laid aside consequently and finally they had become the private forests of influential persons since 17th century. c) Forests for official use. All the forests for official use occupied by government officies since the KORYO Dynasty were expropriated by the YI Dynasty in 1392, and afterwards the forests were allotted on a fixed standard area to the government officies in need of firewoods, and as the forest resources became exhausted due to the depredated forest yield, each office gradually enlarged the allotted area. In the 17th century the national land had been almost devastated by the Japanese invasion and therefore each office was in the difficulty with severe deficit in revenue, thereafter waste lands and forest lands were allotted to government offices inorder to promote the land clearing and the increase in the collections of taxes. And an abuse of wide occupation of the forests by them was derived and there appeared a cause of disorder in the forest land system. So a provision prohibiting to allot the forests newly official use was enacted in 1672, nevertheless the government offices were trying to enlarge their occupied area by encroaching the boundary and this abuse continued up to the end of the YI Dynasty. d) Private forests. The government, at the bigninning of the YI Dynasty, expropriated the forests all over the country under the principle of prohibition of private occupancy of forest lands except for the national uses, while it could not expropriate completely all of the forest lands privately occupied and inherited successively by bureaucrats, and even local governors could not control them because of their strong influences. Accordingly the King, TAI JONG (1401 to 1418 A.D.), legislated the prohibition of private forest occupancy in his code, KYEONG JE YUK JEON (1413), and furthermore he repeatedly emphasized to observe the law. But The private occupancy of forest lands was not yet ceased up at the age of the King, SE JO (1455 to 1468 A.D.), so he prescribed the provision in KYEONG KUK DAI JEON (1474), an immutable law as a written constitution in the YI Dynasty: "Anyone who privately occupy the forest land shall be inflicted 80 floggings" and he prohibited the private possession of forest area even by princes and princesses. But, it seemed to be almost impossible for only one provsion in a code to obstruct the historical growing tendecy of private forest occupancy, for example, the King, SEONG JONG (1470 to 1494 A.D.), himself granted the forests to his royal families in defiance of the prohibition and thereafter such precedents were successively expanded, and besides, taking advantage of these facts, the influential persons openly acquired their private forest lands. After tyrannical rule of the King, YEON SAN (1945 to 1506 A.D.), the political disorder due to the splits to bureaucrats with successional feuds and the usurpations of thrones accelerated the private forest occupancy in all parts of the country, thus the forbidden clause on the private forest occupancy in the law had become merely a legal fiction since the establishment of the Dynasty. As above mentioned, after the invasion of Japanese in 1592, the courts of princes (KUNG BANGG) fell into the financial difficulties, and successive kings transferred the right of tax collection from fisherys and saltfarms to each KUNG BANG and at the same time they allotted the forest areas in attempt to promote the clearing. Availing themselves of this opportunity, royal families and bureaucrats intended to occupy the forests on large scale. Besides a privilege of free selection of grave yard, which had been conventionalized from the era of the KORYO Dynasty, created an abuse of occuping too wide area for grave yards in any forest at their random, so the King, TAI JONG, restricted the area of grave yard and homestead of each family. Under the policy of suppresion of Buddhism in the YI Dynasty a privilege of taxexemption for Buddhist temples was deprived and temple forests had to follow the same course as private forests did. In the middle of 18th century the King, YEONG JO (1725 to 1776 A.D.), took an impartial policy for political parties and promoted the spirit of observing laws by putting royal orders and regulations in good order excessively issued before, thus the confused political situation was saved, meanwhile the government officially permittd the private forest ownership which substantially had already been permitted tacitly and at the same time the private afforestation areas around the grave yards was authorized as private forests at least within YONG HO (a boundary of grave yard). Consequently by the enforcement of above mentioned policies the forbidden clause of private forest ownership which had been a basic principle of forest system in the YI Dynasty entireely remained as only a historical document. Under the rule of the King, SUN JO (1801 to 1834 A.D.), the political situation again got into confusion and as the result of the exploitation from farmers by bureaucrats, the extremely impoverished rural communities created successively wandering peasants who cleared burnt fields and deforested recklessly. In this way the devastation of forests come to the peak regardless of being private forests or national forests, moreover, the influential persons extorted private forests or reserved forests and their expansion of grave yards became also excessive. In 1894 a regulation was issued that the extorted private forests shall be returned to the initial propriators and besides taking wide area of the grave yards was prohibited. And after a reform of the administrative structure following western style, a modern forest possession system was prepared in 1908 by the forest law including a regulation of the return system of forest land ownership. At this point a forbidden clause of private occupancy of forest land got abolished which had been kept even in fictitious state since the foundation of the YI Dynasty. e) Common forests. As above mentioned, the forest system in the YI Dynasty was on the ground of public ownership principle but there was a high restriction to the forest profits of farmers according to the progressive private possession of forest area. And the farmers realized the necessity of possessing common forest. They organized village associations, SONGE or KEUM SONGE, to take the ownerless forests remained around the village as the common forest in opposition to influential persons and on the other hand, they prepared the self-punishment system for the common management of their forests. They made a contribution to the forest protection by preserving the common forests in the late YI Dynasty. It is generally known that the absolute monarchy expr opriates the widespread common forests all over the country in the process of chainging from thefeudal society to the capitalistic one. At this turning point in Korea, Japanese colonialists made public that the ratio of national and private forest lands was 8 to 2 in the late YI Dynasty, but this was merely a distorted statistics with the intention of rationalizing of their dispossession of forests from Korean owners, and they took advantage of dead forbidden clause on the private occupancy of forests for their colonization. They were pretending as if all forests had been in ownerless state, but, in truth, almost all the forest lands in the late YI Dynasty except national forests were in the state of private ownership or private occupancy regardless of their lawfulness.

• Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life
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• v.21 no.6
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• pp.934-947
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• 2011

The purpose of this study is to analyze products for good taste and convenience, which become an engine to constantly create customers. In addition, this study is aimed at investigating the relationship between the selective attributes of Home Meal Replacement, the perceived utilitarian value, and the repurchase intention, and drawing new suggestions on the Home Meal Replacement market from a new marketing perspective. Based on a total of 215 samples, this study reviewed the reliability and fitness of the research model and verified a total of 5 hypothesized using the Amos program. The result of study modeling was GFI=0.905, AGFI=0.849, NFI=0.889, CFI=0.945, and RMR=0.0.092 at the level of $x^2$=230.22 (df=126, p<0.001). First, the food quality (${\beta}$=0.221), convenience (${\beta}$=0.334), packing (${\beta}$=0.278), and employee service (${\beta}$=0.204) of home meal replacement consideration attributes had a positive (+) influence on perceived utilitarian value. Second, perceived utilitarian value (${\beta}$=0.584) had a positive (+) influence on repurchase intention. The factors to differentiate one company from other competitors in terms of the utilitarian value are the quality of food, convenience, wrapping, and services by employees. This study has illustrated the need to focus on the development of a premium menu to compete with other companies and to continue to research and develop nutritious foods that are easy to cook. Moreover, the key factors to have a distinct and constant competitive edge over other companies are the alleviation of consumer anxiety over wrapping container materials, the development of more designs, and the accumulation of service know-how. Therefore, it is necessary for a company to strongly develop the key factors based on its resources as a core capability.

• Korean Journal of Agricultural Science
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• v.30 no.1
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• pp.31-40
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• 2003

A research has been done for growing characteristics of Korean ginseng in Geumsan of Chungnam Province. It had been made to determine the transitional element concentrations of the rocks, divided by biotitic granite(GR) and phyllite(PH). The physical and chemical properties of their weathering soils and ginseng nursery soils were analyzed. The texture in the GR weathering and ginseng nursery soils were sandy clay, and the texture of the PH weathering and ginseng nursery soils were heavy or silty clay. The bulk densities of the GR and PH weathering soils were $1.21{\sim}1.32g/cm^3$ and $1.26{\sim}1.38g/cm^3$, respectively. Also, the bulk densities of the GR and PH ginseng nursery soils were $1.02{\sim}1.10g/cm^3$, respectively. The pH (4.80) of the GR weathering soil were lower than the pH of the PH(5.34) weathering soil. The pH in the 2 year and 4 year-ginseng nursery soil of the GR were 4.39 and 4.40. In addition, those of the PH were 5.24 and 5.34, respectively. The difference in pH of the two nursery soils could be from the pH difference between the two parent materials. The organic matter contents of the GR weathering soils(0.24%) were higher than those of the PH(1.02%) weathering soils. The organic matter of the 2 and 4 year-ginseng GR nursery soils were 0.87% and 1.52%, and of the PH nursery soils were 2.06% and 2.96%, respectively. The total nitrogen contents of the GR weathering soils were 259.43ppm and of the PH weathering soils were 657.22ppm. Those of 2 and 4 year-ginseng GR nursery soils were 588.04ppm and 657.22ppm and those of the PH nursery soils were 1037.72ppm and 1227.96ppm, respectively. The nitrate and ammonium contents of the GR weathering soils were the extremely small, and those of the PH weathering soils were 6.7ppm and 9.94ppm. Those of 2 year-ginseng GR nursery soils(223.09ppm and 26.96ppm) were higher than those of PH(19.46ppm and 8.23ppm) nursery soils. And those of 2 year-ginseng PH nursery soils(14.22ppm and 16.84ppm) were lower than those of PH(306.93ppm, 34.21ppm) nursery soils. The difference was due to fertilizer types and more deposits of nitrate after oxidation of ammonium. The phosphate contents of the GR and PH weathering soils were 14.41ppm and 38.60ppm. Those of GR 2 and 4 year-ginseng nursery soils were 46.89ppm and 102.44ppm and those of the PH nursery soils were 147.04ppm and 38.60ppm. The cation exchange capacities of the GR weathering soils were 12.34me/100g and those of the PH weathering soils were 15.40me/100g. Those of 2 and 4 year-ginseng GR nursery soils were 15.80me/100g and 7.70me/100g and those of PH nursery soils were 12.14me/100g and 12.83me/100g. All of exchangeable cation($K^+$, $Ca^{2+}$, $Mg^{2+}$, $Na^+$) contents in the nursery soils were higher than those in the weathering soils. The $SO_4{^2-}$ contents of the weathering soils in both of the GR(5.98ppm) and PH(9.94ppm) were higher than those of the GR and PH ginseng nursery soils. The $Cl^-$) contents of the GR and PH weathering soils were a very small and those of the nursery soils(2-yr GR: 39.06ppm, 4-yr GR: 273.43ppm, 2-yr PH: 66.41ppm, 4-yr PH: 406.24ppm) were high because of fertilizer inputs.

• Korean Journal of Mineralogy and Petrology
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• v.35 no.2
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• pp.83-100
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• 2022

The Zhenzigou Pb-Zn deposit, which is one of the largest Pb-Zn deposit in the northeast of China, is located at the Qingchengzi mineral field in Jiao Liao Ji belt. The geology of this deposit consists of Archean granulite, Paleoproterozoinc migmatitic granite, Paleo-Mesoproterozoic sodic granite, Paleoproterozoic Liaohe group, Mesozoic diorite and Mesozoic monzoritic granite. The Zhenzigou deposit which is a strata bound SEDEX or SEDEX type deposit occurs as layer ore and vein ore in Langzishan formation and Dashiqiao formation of the Paleoproterozoic Liaohe group. White mica from this deposit are occured only in layer ore and are classified four type (Type I : weak alteration (clastic dolomitic marble), Type II : strong alteration (dolomitic clastic rock), Type III : layer ore (dolomitic clastic rock), Type IV : layer ore (clastic dolomitic marble)). Type I white mica in weak alteration zone is associated with dolomite that is formed by dolomitization of hydrothermal metasomatism. Type II white mica in strong alteration zone is associated with dolomite, ankerite, quartz and alteration of K-feldspar by hydrothermal metasomatism. Type III white mica in layer ore is associated with dolomite, ankerite, calcite, quartz and alteration of K-feldspar by hydrothermal metasomatism. And type IV white mica in layer ore is associated with dolomite, quartz and alteration of K-feldspar by hydrothermal metasomatism. The structural formulars of white micas are determined to be (K_0.92-0.80Na_0.01-0.00Ca_0.02-0.01Ba_0.00Sr_0.01-0.00)_0.95-0.83(Al_1.72-1.57Mg_0.33-0.20Fe_0.01-0.00Mn_0.00Ti_0.02-0.00Cr_0.01-0.00V_0.00Sb_0.02-0.00Ni_0.00Co_0.02-0.00)_1.99-1.90(Si_3.40-3.29Al_0.71-0.60)_4.00O₁₀(OH_2.00-1.83F_0.17-0.00)_2.00, (K_1.03-0.84Na_0.03-0.00Ca_0.08-0.00Ba_0.00Sr_0.01-0.00)_1.08-0.85(Al_1.85-1.65Mg_0.20-0.06Fe_0.10-0.03Mn_0.00Ti_0.05-0.00Cr_0.03-0.00V_0.01-0.00Sb_0.02-0.00Ni_0.00Co_0.03-0.00)_1.99-1.93(Si_3.28-2.99Al_1.01-0.72)_4.00O₁₀(OH_1.96-1.90F_0.10-0.04)_2.00, (K_1.06-0.90Na_0.01-0.00Ca_0.01-0.00Ba_0.00Sr_0.02-0.01)_1.10-0.93(Al_1.93-1.64Mg_0.19-0.00Fe_0.12-0.01Mn_0.00Ti_0.01-0.00Cr_0.01-0.00V_0.00Sb_0.00Ni_0.00Co_0.05-0.01)_2.01-1.94(Si_3.32-2.96Al_1.04-0.68)_4.00O₁₀(OH_2.00-1.91F_0.09-0.00)_2.00 and (K_0.91-0.83Na_0.02-0.01Ca_0.02-0.00Ba_0.01-0.00Sr_0.00)_0.93-0.83(Al_1.84-1.67Mg_0.15-0.08Fe_0.07-0.02Mn_0.00Ti_0.04-0.00Cr_0.06-0.00V_0.02-0.00Sb_0.02-0.01Ni_0.00Co_0.00)_2.00-1.92(Si_3.27-3.16Al_0.84-0.73)_4.00O₁₀(OH_1.97-1.88F_0.12-0.03)_2.00, respectively. It indicated that white mica of from the Zhenzigou deposit has less K, Na and Ca, and more Si than theoretical dioctahedral mica. Compositional variations in white mica from the Zhenzigou deposit are caused by phengitic or Tschermark substitution [(Al³⁺)^VI+(Al³⁺)^IV <-> (Fe²⁺ or Mg²⁺)^VI+(Si⁴⁺)^IV] substitution. It means that the Fe in white mica exists as Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺, but mainly as Fe²⁺. Therefore, white mica from layer ore of the Zhenzigou deposit was formed in the process of remelting and re-precipitation of pre-existed minerals by hydrothermal metasomatism origined metamorphism (greenschist facies) associated with Paleoproterozoic intrusion. And compositional variations in white mica from the Zhenzigou deposit are caused by phengitic or Tschermark substitution [(Al³⁺)^VI+(Al³⁺)^IV <-> (Fe²⁺ or Mg²⁺)^VI+(Si⁴⁺)^IV] substitution during hydrothermal metasomatism depending on wallrock type, alteration degree and ore/gangue mineral occurrence frequency.

• MISULJARYO - National Museum of Korea Art Journal
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• v.98
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• pp.226-241
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• 2020

Located on the right side of the third floor of the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, the "Art of Central Asia" exhibition boasts the world's finest collection of artworks and artifacts from the Silk Road. Every item in the collection has been classified by region, and many of them were collected in the early twentieth century through archaeological surveys led by Russia's Pyotr Kozlov, Mikhail Berezovsky, and Sergey Oldenburg. Some of these artifacts have been presented around the world through special exhibitions held in Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Korea, Japan, and elsewhere. The fruits of Russia's Silk Road expeditions were also on full display in the 2008 exhibition The Caves of One Thousand Buddhas - Russian Expeditions on the Silk Route on the Occasion of 190 Years of the Asiatic Museum, held at the Hermitage Museum. Published in 2018 by the Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House in collaboration with the Hermitage Museum, Kuche Art Relics Collected in Russia introduces the Hermitage's collection of artifacts from the Kuche (or Kucha) region. While the book focuses exclusively on artifacts excavated from the Kuche area, it also includes valuable on-site photos and sketches from the Russian expeditions, thus helping to enhance readers' overall understanding of the characteristics of Kuche art within the Buddhist art of Central Asia. The book was compiled by Dr. Kira Samosyuk, senior curator of the Oriental Department of the Hermitage Museum, who also wrote the main article and the artifact descriptions. Dr. Samosyuk is an internationally renowned scholar of Central Asian Buddhist art, with a particular expertise in the art of Khara-Khoto and Xi-yu. In her article "The Art of the Kuche Buddhist Temples," Dr. Samosyuk provides an overview of Russia's Silk Road expeditions, before introducing the historical development of Kuche in the Buddhist era and the aspects of Buddhism transmitted to Kuche. She describes the murals and clay sculptures in the Buddhist grottoes, giving important details on their themes and issues with estimating their dates, and also explains how the temples operated as places of worship. In conclusion, Dr. Samosyuk argues that the Kuche region, while continuously engaging with various peoples in China and the nomadic world, developed its own independent Buddhist culture incorporating elements of Gandara, Hellenistic, Persian, and Chinese art and culture. Finally, she states that the culture of the Kuche region had a profound influence not only on the Tarim Basin, but also on the Buddhist grottoes of Dunhuang and the central region of China. A considerable portion of Dr. Samosyuk's article addresses efforts to estimate the date of the grottoes in the Kuche region. After citing various scholars' views on the dates of the murals, she argues that the Kizil grottoes likely began prior to the fifth century, which is at least 100 years earlier than most current estimates. This conclusion is reached by comparing the iconography of the armor depicted in the murals with related materials excavated from the surrounding area (such as items of Sogdian art). However, efforts to date the Buddhist grottoes of Kuche must take many factors into consideration, such as the geological characteristics of the caves, the themes and styles of the Buddhist paintings, the types of pigments used, and the clothing, hairstyles, and ornamentation of the depicted figures. Moreover, such interdisciplinary data must be studied within the context of Kuche's relations with nearby cultures. Scientific methods such as radiocarbon dating could also be applied for supplementary materials. The preface of Kuche Art Relics Collected in Russia reveals that the catalog is the first volume covering the Hermitage Museum's collection of Kuche art, and that the next volume in the series will cover a large collection of mural fragments that were taken from Berlin during World War II. For many years, the whereabouts of these mural fragments were unknown to both the public and academia, but after restoration, the fragments were recently re-introduced to the public as part of the museum's permanent exhibition. We look forward to the next publication that focuses on these mural fragments, and also to future catalogs introducing the artifacts of Turpan and Khotan. Currently, fragments of the murals from the Kuche grottoes are scattered among various countries, including Russia, Germany, and Korea. With the publication of this catalog, it seems like an opportune time to publish a comprehensive catalog on the murals of the Kuche region, which represent a compelling mixture of East-West culture that reflects the overall characteristics of the region. A catalog that includes both the remaining murals of the Kizil grottoes and the fragments from different parts of the world could greatly enhance our understanding of the murals' original state. Such a book would hopefully include a more detailed and interdisciplinary discussion of the artifacts and murals, including scientific analyses of the pigments and other materials from the perspective of conservation science. With the ongoing rapid development in western China, the grotto murals are facing a serious crisis related to climate change and overcrowding in the oasis city of Xinjiang. To overcome this challenge, the cultural communities of China and other countries that possess advanced technology for conservation and restoration must begin working together to protect and restore the murals of the Silk Road grottoes. Moreover, centers for conservation science should be established to foster human resources and collect information. Compiling the data of Russian expeditions related to the grottoes of Kuche (among the results of Western archaeological surveys of the Silk Road in the early twentieth century), Kuche Art Relics Collected in Russia represents an important contribution to research on Kuche's Buddhist art and the Silk Road, which will only be enhanced by a future volume introducing the mural fragments from Germany. As the new authoritative source for academic research on the artworks and artifacts of the Kuche region, the book also lays the groundwork for new directions for future studies on the Silk Road. Finally, the book is also quite significant for employing a new editing system that improves its academic clarity and convenience. In conclusion, Dr. Kira Samosyuk, who planned the publication, deserves tremendous praise for taking the research of Silk Road art to new heights.