고구려 고분벽화의 거문고

Kŏmun go in the Tomb paintings of the Koguryŏ

As a contribution to the discussion of the origins of the kŏmun go, I examine the depictions of an instrument assumed to be the kŏmun go in wall paintings from Koguryŏ tombs, attempting to delimit which of the instruments shown in these paintings are kŏmun go and which are not, and how the construction of the kŏmun go should be understood. To this end, I consider the estimated date of eight Koguryŏ tomb paintings completed between about the fourth and the seventh century, comparing the instruments depicted in tombs associated with the kŏmun go: Anak #3, T aesŏngni #1, T onggu #12, Changch ŏn #1, the Tomb of the Dancers, Kangsŏdaemyo, T onggu #4, and T onggu #5(Chiban #17). I conclude from this that it is unlikely thah the stringed instruments appearing in the early tomb paintings are kŏmun go and that an early form of kŏmun go is depicted in tombs dating from the fifth century: Changch ŏn #1 and the Tomb of the Dancers.