• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.40
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• pp.243-270
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• 2007

Linked pearls pattern expressed on textiles have no limited scale or shape when manufacturing, so they are free in expression. And from the design, material, and color we can analogize the social culture of that age. Oriental linked pearls pattern was started from the Sasanian Persia and introduced through the Silk Road, so it is closely connected with the East and the West culture. This study will consider from the 5th century to the 10th century; the mural costume of the West Central Asia, the ancient textiles excavated from the Sinjiang and Qinghai area of China, and the linked pearls pattern which are collected at Shosoin, Japan. And from this study, will concentrate on clarifying the linked pearls pattern's condition of the cultural exchange between the East and the West and it's structural variation process. The design of linked pearls pattern delivered to the East through the Silk Road is differed by area. For example, in the Western Pamir Plateau, where the ancient Sogdians mainly lived, the excavated linked pearls pattern's subject were deer or cassowary variated from the West Asian motif. But the ones excavated from Kucha Xingang had Chinese motifs added so they showed Chinese characters or Buddhist Bodhisattva image instead of Helios. Like this, the appearance of new patterns, which were accompanied by structural variations, gradually deviated from the standardized pattern of the Sasanian Persia. And this structural variation process has relations with the construction and arrangement method of various patterns of the after ages. The foliated floral Spray, which is placed at the lozenge space of linked pearls' space, had developed into ogival - shaped pattern (Neunghwamun). And the prevalence of geometrical structure pattern after the 10th century and the unfolding method of Tapjamun which is arranging unit pattern in order, are similar to the linked pearl pattern. In brief, linked pearls pattern accompanied by technical improvement let us understand the polished artistic code from its expression, and has importance in showing universal pattern beyond region and culture.

• Acta Via Serica
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.153-178
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• 2022

This study analyzes the traces of East-West cultural exchange focusing on the palmette pattern expressed on Sassanid Persian and Silla Korean carpets. The results of the study are as follows. The palmette, which originated in ancient Egypt, is an imaginary flower made up of the transformation of a lotus, which combined with the Mesopotamian quadrant (四分法) and expanded to a four-leaf palmette and further to an eight-leaf palmette by applying the octant (八分法). The palmette, which was brought to Assyria, Achaemenid Persia, Parthia, Greece, and Rome, can be seen lavishly decorated with plant motifs characteristic of the region. Sassanid Persia inherited the tradition of the palmette pattern, which applied the quadrant and octant seen in several previous dynasties. On the one hand, it has evolved more splendidly by combining the twenty or twenty-one-leaf palmette and the traditional pearl-rounded pattern decoration of Sassanid Persia. These Sassanid Persian palmette patterns can be found through the palmette patterns depicted on the ceilings of the Dunhuang Grottoes located on the Silk Road. The palmette pattern of the Dunhuang Grottoes was expressed in the form of a fusion of Persian Zoroastrianism, Indian Buddhism, and indigenous religions. In the Tang Dynasty, it shows the typical palmette pattern of four and eight leaves in the medallion composition, which were mainly seen in Persian palmettes. The palmette pattern handed down to Silla can be found on a Silla carpet, estimated to be from around the 8th century, in the collection of Shoso-in (正倉院), Japan. The Silla carpet shows a unique Silla style using motifs such as peonies and young monks, which were popular in Silla while following the overall design of the Persian medallion.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Costume
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• v.66 no.1
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• pp.122-134
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• 2016

The Mural Tomb of Xu Xianxiu(AD 571), a high ranking official in Northern Qi period, is located in Taiyuan, Shanxi province, China. Despite having been raided, it was still discovered to contain over 530 pieces, such as artifacts and murals, in excellent state of preservation. These murals are noteworthy for their high level of detail compared to other murals from the same era, and are important for understanding the historical context of active East-West and Han-Hu cultural exchange in the $6^{th}$ to $7^{th}$ century. The murals of Xu Xianxiu's tomb depict round-collared and narrow-sleeved garments as well as straight collared robes typical of the Xianbei tribe's attire. Notable are the ermine fur overcoat and a headwear with flares on the left and right thought to be unique to the Xianbei. The wife and female servants show female attire of the Xianbei at the time; this attire can be characterized by narrow-sleeved long gowns and asymmetrical flying-bird buns. Despite the anti-Han policy of Northern Qi, influences such as the right sided gathering of the robes and embellished hair styles remain. The procession also depicts the three-cornered headdress and long-tailed hood of the Xianbei men, which have been recorded in documents. The large rounded pearl pattern containing the palmette, the divine animal, and bodhisattva's head motifs show the influence of the Western China [Xi'yu]. Considering that Northern Qi had more active interactions with the three ancient kingdoms of Korea than with the Southern Kingdoms[Nanchao], the findings of this study call for further research on the correlation between the attire of ancient Korea and Northern Qi.

• Journal of the Korea Fashion and Costume Design Association
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.41-54
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• 2005

The purposes of this study on various headgear at the age of the Persian Achaemenes are to analyze one cultural aspect of the Achaemenes Kingdom that made a great empire about 5th century B.C. and to understand the ancient Persian culture. It is widely recognized that the Persian region was an important place for cultural exchange between the East and the West through the Silk Road and its culture affected China and Korea. Therefore, it is necessary to study ancient culture in this region for further understanding of the Korean culture. However, research activities have not been satisfactorily conducted. This study is an attempt to elevate the interest in this subject. In this study, European archeological materials covering Naqsh-e-Rostam (a tomb of Darius), Apadana stairs, Darius palace in Persepolis, and Bistun(Behistun), the relief at the age of the Achaemenes Kingdom, were collected and analyzed. From this study, the following results were obtained. For crowns at the age of the Achaemenes Kingdom, two kinds of shapes are observed; Mitra, a kind of headband, in the early period and a cylindrical one in the later period. Mitra was also worn by chiefs trusted by the king. Further, slightly different styles of cylindrical crowns were observed, which is considered that kings might wear unique crowns to symbolize new period of their reign. In addition to crowns, various styles of headgear for subjects are observed, meaning that tribes conquered by the Persian empire used their unique headgear. Further, such different styles of headgear might be a tool for social classification. Representative styles of headgear include the semicircular one worn by the Median nobles, Strophion originated from the Elam's headband, and nomadic tribes' Baschlik observed in the Median relics.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.54-73
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• 2012

In this article, we examined the patterns of activities of the Sarmathians though in a humble measure, with a focus on the regions where the Sarmathian sheaths spreaded. One of the main weapons the mounted nomads like the Scythias, the Sarmathians, and the Alans used at war was a spear. Though complementary, a sword was the most convenient and appropriate weapon when fighting at a near distance, fallen from the horse to the ground. The Sarmathian swords continued the tradition of the Akinakes which the Scythias or the Persians used, but those of the Sarmathians showed some advances in terms of the easiness with which a sword was drawn out from a sheath, and the way the sheaths were worn to parts of a human body. It turns out that the Sarmathian sheaths, which were designed for the people to draw swords easily, having the sheaths attached to thighs through 4 bumps, spread extensively from Pazyryk, Altai, to South Siberia, Bactria, Parthia and Rome. The most noteworthy out of all the Sarmathian sheaths were the ones that were excavated from the 4th tomb in Tillatepe, Afghanistan which belonged to the region of Bactria. The owner of the fourth tomb of Tilla-tepe whose region was under the control of Kushan Dynasty at that time, was buried wearing Sarmathian swords, and regarded as a big shot in the region of Bactria which was also under the governance of Kushan Dynasty. The fact that the owner of the tomb wore two swords suggests that there had been active exchange between Bactria and Sarmathia. It seemed that the reason why the Sarmathians could play an important role in the exchange between the East and the West might have something to do with their role of supplying Chinese goods to Silk Road. That's why we are interested in how the copper mirrors of Han Dynasty, decoration beads like melon-type beads, crystal beads and goldring articulated beads, and the artifacts of South China which produced silks were excavated in the northern steppe route where the Sarmathians actively worked. Our study have established that the eye beads discovered in Sarmathian tomb estimated to have been built around the 1st century B.C. were reprocessed in China, and then imported to Sarmathia again. We should note the Huns as a medium between the Sarmathians and the South China which were far apart from each other. Thus gold-ring articulated beads which were spread out mainly across the South China has been discovered in the Huns' remains. On the other hand, between 2nd century B.C. and 2nd century A.D. which were main periods of the Sarmathians, it was considered that the traffic route connecting the steppe route and the South China might be West-South silk road which started from Yunnan, passed through Myanmar, Pakistan, and Afghanistan, and then went into the east of India. The West-south Silk road is presumed to have been used by nomadic tribes who wanted to get the goods from South China before the Oasis route was activated by the Han Dynasty's policy of managing the countries bordering on Western China.