Introduction

In August 1970, the Chinese government repaired an ancient Koguryŏ tomb near the mid-Yalu riverside at Ch'ang-ch'uan, Chi-an Prefecture of Chi-lin Province, Manchuria. A general report on this ancient tomb, called Tomb No.1 at Ch'ang-ch'uan, was published in 1982 in a Chinese archeological journal, Tung-pei k'ao-ku yü li-shih(Chi-an-hsien wen-wu pao-kuan-so 1982), by government officials of Chi-an Prefecture. Tomb No.1 is located about 20 kilometers northeast of Chi-an Town, Chi-lin Province. According to the general report, it is believed to have been constructed by Koguryŏ people around the late fifth century.

The murals of Tomb No.1 at Ch'ang-ch'uan contain ten examples of musical instruments, including new instruments previously undiscovered in Koguryŏ tomb excavations. Of the ten instruments, all of which are depicted in the front room of the tomb, seven appear in the ceiling paintings and three in wall paintings. The general report on Tomb No.1 at Ch'ang-ch'uan gives only simple descriptions and commentaries on the musical instruments, but even these contain probable errors. This paper is an attempt to correct those mistakes and to provide a more extensive examination of the evidence in the light of recent archeological evidence from other Koguryŏ tomb excavations.