초록 열기/닫기 버튼
The movement of Xiongnu people gave greatly influence to the dominion of world history. Records about ‘Xiongnu’ people were left only partly in the Chinese historical records of their contact with the West through the war. Their vestiges have been discovered in the area without the records of them, but the only way to find out their actual substance is archaeological expedition. Therefore, many countries of both East and West such as Russia, Hungary, France, the U. S., Belgium, Korea and Japan have dispatched the researchers to the Mongol area, once the central area of Xiongnu people, to proceed archaeological survey. Thereupon, in this study I will portray the picture of Xiongnu people who survived in the great steppe based on the archaeological evidences excavated from Mongolia as an extension of the existing studies on the Xiongnu tombs in Mongolia. Xiongnu People: How Xiongnu people who left the great Xiongnu culture on the steppe look like? The faces of two people appearing on the woolen object have eyes, wide nose and long mustache that are impressive. Through the archaeological materials, we can directly meet Xiongnu people via the excavated human skeleton, but in many cases the bones were damaged by tomb robbery or underground animals. In the recent excavations, it is the trend to proceed the study with physical anthropologist because researchers feel keenly the necessity of skeletal analysis. The materials tell that the height of Xiongnu women was 150-167 cm, and that of Xiongnu men was 167-174 cm. The age of death was thirties in women and thirties to forties in men. Also many male were dead in their teens. The fractures of men were because of battles and aged people over sixties were rare. The owner of large tomb is aristocrat who did not do hard work, and the tomb of children followed the status of their parents. Bones outside the wooden coffin might have been the burial of the living with the dead, and those who were buried in the attached tombs are subordinates of the owner of the main tomb. The hole in the skull is related to the medical treatment or religion, and there is a child who died of malnutrition. The serious wear and tear on teeth is because of carnivorous diet. What is important is the co-presence of Mongoloid and European race in the same tumulus, which means the Xiongnu society was multi-raced and multi-cultured one. Food & Cook: The main diet of nomad was meat such as mutton, goat, beef and horseflesh and dairy products. A great deal of animal bone has been excavated from Xiongnu tombs and most of them was sacrifices for funeral rites. The offering food for the owner of the tomb was left in some cases: Cow bones were put in bronze cauldron, sheep bone and rabbit bone were discovered together and sheep ribs were put beside the owner of the tomb. Large jar is a storing vessel. Sometimes grains were excavated from it and alcohol or liquid was stored in it. There is a hole in the lower part of the jar, which seems to be used like today's rice barrel from which the contents are pulled out. Grains were excavated from the inside of a wooden coffin; grains were also in a lacquer ware; sheep bone, grain and vegetables were put in a bronze cauldron. Vessel: The kitchen appliances of nomad can be used indoor, however, in most cases they are fit for field life. Earthenware model of cooking fireplace was excavated. Bronze cauldron, bronze tray, wooden dish, bronze kettle, rice steamer, lacquer ware vessel with inscription (B. C. 2), lacquer ware side-dish box and bowl with two ear for cooking and distributing food were discovered. Iron ladle, tea spoon, wooden spoon, bone chopstick, birch bark vessel were also excavated. Earthenware excavated are bowl, pot, vessel, jar, footed dish, lamp-oil container and steamer etc. Customs & Ornaments Clothing and Clothing Ornaments: Winter cap with earpiece made of pelt and triangle-shaped hat made of silk were excavated. The burial of pigtail in silk pouch means the custom to summon the soul of the dead by cutting the hair where the soul stays, which illustrates the nomad proceeded the funeral rites without killing the living. A bronze ornament for the head end was discovered. The form of the clothing is convenient for riding horse. The long coat is long and there is the trace of fur padding on the inside. There is a hole on the crotch of the trousers which is to excrete without taking off trousers in the cold. The belts excavated were made of gold, iron, wood and stone and the shoes excavated were made of silk and pelt. A bronze shoes ornament and an iron shoes ornament were excavated. The jade ornaments excavated were round disk-shaped one, jade shroud, comma-shaped jade, jade trousers and beads. There were also ornaments like gold earrings and shells. 'Salavch' stone necklace ornament and the sculpture of naked 'Bes' which are presumed to have come Egypt were excavated. Weapons and Portable goods: A knife is basic belongings for nomad and diverse types of knife have been excavated such as knife, small knife, iron sword and iron knife. Xiongnu people carried iron cane and iron saw. Whetstone and firing tools, small musical instrument made of bone, tobacco pipe and coins were also major belongings. Bow and arrow was necessities for Xiongnu people as warrior and hunter. The tip and the hand-grip of the bow were made solid by attaching bones. A quiver made of white birch bark was discovered. Iron arrowheads of willow-leaf shape and three-wing shape were excavated and wooden arrowhead was also excavated. Mirrors made in the Han-Dynasty China and it was buried with destroyed and wrapped in silk. Unrhaeyeonhomungyeong(雲雷緣弧文鏡)(A. D. 20-50), Gyugugyeong(規矩鏡) (B. C. 1C-A. D. 1C) and Bannimungyeong(蟠螭文鏡) (B. C. 3-2C) were excavated. A silver ornament plate which are presumed to be a Greek goddess is an important relic that suggests the presence of international trade. Coach and Horse Ornaments: Twenty or more coaches were discovered on the lid of large wooden chamber tomb and the form of the coaches were ones with umbrella and ones with room. Horse ornaments such as forehead plate, horse-bit, harness ornament, harness fittings, stirrup and horse-bell were excavated. In some cases, the part of horse-bit was replaced with antler and bone. Wooden saddle and iron stirrup were discovered. On the breast ornament of the horse was expressed an unicorn and on the hip ornament unicorn, yak, deer, goat and dragon. Sometimes horse bell was excavated. Settlement & Tomb: Nomads left few things after their movement since they made tent-like houses called 'Ger' on the ground and moved to and from the summer camp and the winter camp. However, recently subterranean dwelling pit house and heating equipment was discovered, and building site and roadway were excavated as a result of the survey on castle site. Basically, the main burial is settled deep underground. The plane figure is divided into round and square, and the square-shaped tomb has doorway. The central part of the tomb is depressed because of the disruption of the wooden chamber of the main burial. Sometimes there exposed black soil that was presumed as the trace of firing rituals. Deep inside the pit of the tomb was filled with many stones (broken stones, 할석) and underneath there were sacrificed animals or buried coach. In case of large tomb, dual wooden chambers and wooden coffin were placed on the main burial. Artifacts were buried in the space between the exterior chamber and the interior chamber, a good deal of woolen cloth were excavated. The inside of the tomb was decorated with carpet, silk cloth or white birch bark to make a cozy place for rest after death. On the exterior of the wooden coffin are diverse ornaments such as gold belt, metal flower pattern ornament, ornament with sun and moon pattern made of various materials like gold, bronze and iron. The gilt-bronze or bronze rod discovered outside the coffin is likely to have been knob. Xiongnu Existence: The life of Xiongnu people was survival itself. We reviewed Xiongnu people and their food, clothing and shelter based on the archaeological evidence as mentioned above. The Xiongnu archaeology has very difficult process from the discovery of the remains to the survey & excavation because there are numerous challenges to solve such as great Steppe, fast-changing climate, insufficient materials and manpower. However, the collaboration of the scholars from Mongol and other countries for the past 77 years had made slow but steady survey and study until now and it yielded today's achievement. I would like to express the existence of Xiongnu reviewed with the archaeological evidence as ‘the diversification of materials due to the insufficiency and the destruction and omission of formality.’ Even in the production of one product, the choice of material was diverse such as gold, gilt-bronze, bronze, iron, wood and bone as situation permitted. In the situation where the Chinese buried the living with the dead, Xiongnu people destroyed the formality and just cut their hair and put it into the tomb. Xiongnu people valued the unique efficiency of nomad, fast absorbed and adapted to heterogeneous cultures. Who was the host of the Xiongnu culture at that time that comprehended the civilization from all over the world? Xiongnu emphasized free trade more than tax treatment. Xiongnu was superior to settled countries like China in the trade with far away region because they secured transportation with mobility by taming horses. (Nov. 2010)
키워드열기/닫기 버튼
Xiongnu, Steppe, Existence, Archaeology, Evidence, Tomb, Mongol
