Humans have maintained an inseparable relationship with horses since ancient times. People have long used horses for transportation and communication as well as horseback riding and horseback martial arts, relying on them for diverse purposes. They ha...
Humans have maintained an inseparable relationship with horses since ancient times. People have long used horses for transportation and communication as well as horseback riding and horseback martial arts, relying on them for diverse purposes. They have also painted pictures in which horses are portrayed as a guardian carrying the spirits of the dead to the other world. Such pictures can be seen on the walls of tombs dating from the Goguryeo and Silla Periods, including the Cheonmachong Tomb.
People eventually made efforts to handle horses more effectively, and started making horse harnesses, including the bit (i.e. the part of the bridle that is inserted into a horse’s mouth to control it), stirrup and saddle (which serve to keep the rider stably mounted on the horse), Darae(mudguard), and shoes (which are made to protect the horse’s soles). The various accessories used with horses include metal parts used to fix or connect leather straps, decorative bands, hanging accessories, and horse bells. Naturally, the saddle is the item that embodies the relationship between a horse and its rider better than any other.
I examined the social status of the people who owned different horse saddles based on the shape, quality, and patterns of more than twenty saddles dating from the Joseon Period kept by me. The studyon these well-preserved saddles with distinctive features also attempted to examine the changes made to saddles during the Three Kingdoms Period (circa 57 BC - 668 AD) and the Goryeo Period (918-1392), and to determine why they became more simple and plain in the Joseon Period (1392-1910).
Nowadays it is very difficult to find saddles dating from the Joseon Period. As I have collected saddles, harness accessories and other times for many years due to my special interest in them, and particularly those made in the late Joseon Period, I decided to write a thesis about them.
The patterns of saddles made during the Joseon Period are diverse partly because of developments in workmanship, partly because certain supplies became more available, and partly because a wider social group was able to own horses. Mother-of-pearl patterns became larger supposedly as a result of the esthetic sensibility of the period, which favored simplicity and plainness, and thanks to the development of the skill of carving large pieces of mother-of-pearl. I identified the following features in saddles made during the Joseon Period.
First, traditional significance :
Beauty has an intrinsic value in that it reflects the ideas and trends of a specific period, although it continues to change and develop overtime. Scrolling vine patterns first appeared in the murals of tombs of the Goguryeo Period (circa 37 BC - 668 AD). However, they were superseded by scrolling lotus, peony, cotton rose, and Bosanghwa (an imaginary flower) patterns as a result of continuous changes and development. Lightning-shaped patterns had been used in a variety of household goods earlier, and appeared on horse saddles in the Joseon Period.
Second, supernaturalism - related significance :
As regards dragon-shaped patterns, the dragon has traditionally been regarded as a propitious animal. It is an imaginary animal that symbolizes the power to drive away evil spirits, as well as longevity and heavenly blessing. The dragon was thought to have the supernatural power of keeping farmland fertile and bringing a good year for farmers. Meanwhile, tortoise shell-shaped patterns were based on the folk belief that a tortoise was a god-like creature associated with long life and propitiousness.
Third, Buddhism-related significance :
Regarding the geometric patterns used on saddles, the Chinese character "卍" is a Brahimi letter that is commonly used in Buddhism-related objects to symbolize uninterrupted eternity.
Fourth, Confucianism-related significance :
Bamboo is one of the sagunja (i.e. the four plants, namely plum, orchid, chrysanthemum, and bamboo, which came to be regarded as symbols of grace under the influence of Confucianism). Bamboo was compared to a man of virtue and was deeply loved as a symbol of chastity and fidelity by Confucian scholars during the Joseon Period. An apricot-bamboo combination (with the apricot symbolizing a wife, bamboo a husband)symbolized conjugal harmony. Bat-shaped patterns were also much used, as bats were associated with prolificacy. The Chinese character ?(pronounced‘bok’), meaning‘bat’, looks similar to 福(pronounced also ‘bok’), meaning ‘blessing,’ which was another reason for the frequent use of bat-shaped patterns.
I also compared a saddle in my possession dating from the Joseon Period with that used by Choi Mun-byeong, the leader of Uibyeong (Righteous Army) group during the Japanese Invasions in the late 16thcentury.
The patterns and the size of these two saddles are similar. They show no noticeable differences in terms of the appearance and quality of the handle, cover, fastening stringand stirrups. As for mine, the cover and Darae are of a type that can be put on and off, and contain bat-shaped patterns, while Choi’s is simple and contains no patterns.
One feature that distinguishes my saddle from Choi’s is the existence of strap link at the front, while Choi’s has holes instead. The existence of a strap link indicates that the bridle and hanging accessories were linked with the saddle. The plurality of harness items that can be linked to the harness is related with the social status of the owner.
Another feature that distinguishes the two saddles is that the front/end part of my saddle is made of shark skin, where as Choi’s is made of porcupine skin. According to the harness-related regulations of the Joseon Period, which state that only Grade1 and 2 officials could own a saddle made of shark skin, my saddle is presumed to have been owned by Grade 1 and 2 officials.
Few studies have been conducted on horse saddles of the Joseon Period, and anyway only a few such horse saddles have survived to the present day. As such, I considered it worthwhile to examine in closer detail the saddle in my possession.