archaeologists after the alleged discovery of the so-called tomb of Dangun in the Pyongyang area. This was scientific evidence of the existence of the mythical first Korean ancestor, born as the result of a union between a she-bear and the son of heaven according to various written sources of the twelfth century a.d. In order to emphasize the importance of the cultural accomplishments of Dangun and his successors, the earlier chronological framework of the 1960s was abandoned and a totally new picture of prehistoric Korea presented, but without any objective evidence. Archaeology in North Korea has now become a tool of state doctrine, part of the political propaganda of a chauvinist nationalism, and it can no longer be regarded as an independent scientific discipline.

Korean Archaeology in the New Millennium

Korean archaeologists will face many daunting challenges in the early decades of the new millennium. There is so much new archaeological data reported each year in South Korea that it has almost become impossible for even a Korean archaeology specialist to digest and make sense of it all. It is becoming more difficult to synthesize data and provide consistent and comprehensive interpretations of Korean prehistory and early history. This task will only be possible if there is cooperative work among specialists from different periods and themes.

Korean archaeology will need an independent framework of interpretation for both prehistoric and historical archaeology. Archaeological interpretation in Korea remains superficial, with most research being focused on typological studies and the periodization of artifacts and sites, with rudimentary explanations based on diffusion and migration. Historical archaeology does not provide alternative explanations. Historical records are considered to be of primary importance, and this attitude limits and dictates the interpretation of archaeological data. Korean archaeology must become more independent in its theory and methodology so it will be no longer considered a subdiscipline of historiography.

In both North and South Korea, archaeological research was almost exclusively practiced by Koreans in the last half of the twentieth century. Foreigners are still not allowed to excavate an archaeological site in South Korea, and in North Korea, there is no known case of foreign archaeological research. Except for only a few Japanese scholars and still fewer western scholars, Korean archaeology is still very much isolated from the outside world. In order to internationalize Korean archaeology, reports and papers must be published with English abstracts, cooperative fieldwork with foreign institutions should take place, and Koreans should be trained in foreign archaeology. There is still only a single monograph on Korean archaeology in English, and that by a western scholar (Nelson 1993).

The last, but hardly the least, challenge to be faced by Korean archaeologists may be the possible reunification of the two Koreas. Between North and South Korea there are huge differences in theory, methodology, empirical data, and the very practice of archaeology. Even before unification there should be some kind of constructive engagement among archaeologists from the two Koreas, which should include joint field surveys and excavations as well as the exchange of personnel and archaeological collections.

Yangjin Pak

References

Choi, Mong-lyong, et al. 1992. Hanguk Seonsa Gogohaksa [History of Korean Prehistoric Archaeology]. Seoul: Kkachi.

Hatada, Takashi. 1981. Shin Chosenshi nyumon [New Introduction to Korean History]. Tokyo: Ryukei shosha.

Nelson, Sarah M. 1993. The Archaeology of Korea. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Pai, Hyung Il. 2000. Constructing “Korean” Origins: A Critical Review of Archaeology, Historiography, and Racial Myth in Korean State-Formation Theories. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Asia Center.

Yi, Seon-bok. 1988. Gogohak Gaeron [Introduction to Archaeology]. Seoul: Iron gwa silcheon.

Korošec, Josip

(1909–1966)

The Slovenian archaeologist Josip Korošec was involved with Neolithic, Eneolithic, and early Slavonic archaeology in slovenia in the first