6th-Century Gaya Girl Resurrected

This model of a 6th-century servant girl of Gaya Kingdom (42-562) was constructed based on the bones excavated in Changnyeong, South Gyeongsang Province. The Gaya National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, which created the model, will show it to the public at the National Palace Museum of Korea, Seoul, from Nov. 25 to 29, and then at Changnyeong Museum, South Gyeongsang Province, from Dec. 1 to 6. / Korea Times

By Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter

A life-size model of a young girl from the 6th-century Gaya Kingdom (42-562) was revealed in Seoul, Wednesday. The model, constructed from the ``1,500-year-old's'' excavated skeletal remains, is the first of its kind in the country.

``We have excavated human bones on many occasions but it is the first time we created a full-scale model,'' Kang Soon-hyung, director of the Gaya National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, was quoted as saying by the Munhwa Ilbo.

The girl, who was buried alive, is speculated to have been a 16-year-old servant to a powerful family. After adding layers of muscle and skin as well locks of hair, the model stands 1.53 meters tall. She is relatively short but is slim and has a small face ― a beauty by modern standards.

Her remains were among those of four people that were unearthed during the institute's excavation project in Songhyeong-dong, Changnyeong-gun, South Gyeongsang Province, between 2006 and 2007. A study on Gaya's custom of burying the living with the dead will soon be published, the institute said.

The life-size model marks the highlight of the study, in that it allows a scientific and realistic restoration of an ancient Korean. She had a short jawbone and thus had a rather wide face but had a long neck; she had short arms but long fingers and toes. She was very slim, with a waist measuring 21.5 inches, compared to the modern average of 26 inches. The upper half of her body was large compared to her lower half. It is also speculated that she knelt on her knees frequently.

The project was carried out by sculptor-anatomy specialist Kim Byung-ha and CELL, a firm that was in charge of costumes for major films such as ``Thirst'' by Park Chan-wook and ``Mother'' by Bong Joon-ho.

The model will be displayed at the National Palace Museum of Korea, Seoul, from Nov. 25 to 29, and then at Changnyeong Museum, South Gyeongsang Province, from Dec. 1 to 6.

hyowlee@koreatimes.co.kr