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| A metal type that was unearthed on Nov. 14 at the site of Manwoldae, a palace of the Goryeo Kingdom located in the North Korean city of Gaeseong, is seen from different angles. / Yonhap |
By Kwon Ji-youn
A piece of metal type was unearthed at the site of Manwoldae, a medieval royal palace of the Goryeo Kingdom (918-1392) in the North Korean border city of Gaeseong, a group of South and North Korean historians said Monday.
The metal type, discovered on Nov. 14, is among some 3,500 relics excavated at the site since the Manwoldae Project was renewed in June, they said at a press briefing. The project is an inter-Korean archaeological exploration of the palace site.
"We are presuming, based on its features, that the metal type was created during the Goryeo Kingdom before 1361, when Manwoldae was destroyed," said Choe Kwang-shik, who leads the group.
The discovery brings the total number of sets of movable metal type unearthed to three.
The South's National Museum of Korea and the North's Korean Central History Museum possess one each.
The spot where the type housed at the National Museum of Korea was found is unclear, while the type at the Korean Central History Museum was discovered when the North carried out maintenance work at the Manwoldae site in 1956.
According to Choe, the lately-found metal type is "more elaborate and of higher quality" than the two found previously.
They need further appraisal to discern the character on the metal type that is 1.35 centimeters long, 1.3 centimeters wide and 0.6 centimeters tall.
The two Koreas have conducted six joint excavations at Manwoldae, and the project is overseen by expert research and discovery teams from both.
In 2011, it came to a standstill amid prolonged inter-Korean tension, but was revived in June last year.
This year's excavation marked the longest run since the project began in 2007, lasting from June 4 to Nov. 30.
The Manwoldae Palace was added to UNESCO's list of World Heritage Sites in 2013. It was constructed in 919 but was destroyed during the Red Turbans invasions of Korea during the 14th century.
Meanwhile, seven blocks of metal type, which were once thought to be among the world's oldest and were speculated to have printed "Jeungdoga," a note from a Buddhist song from the Goryeo Kingdom, were assessed as fake by the National Forensic Service in October.
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