Sunken treasures reveal secrets of Goryeo Korean maritime route

Off the rugged, wave-swept coast of Taean, a treacherous marine graveyard known historically as the "Racecourse of the Sea" has yielded two newly discovered Goryeo Dynasty shipwrecks, offering an unprecedented window into 13th-century statecraft, commerce and seafaring.

The National Research Institute of Maritime Cultural Heritage said Wednesday that underwater archaeologists have fully identified the wreckage of the Mado No. 5 ship and spotted the traces of a brand-new wreck, Mado No. 6, nearby. Together, the finds illuminate the sophisticated tax-grain shipping networks that once fed the Goryeo capital of Gaegyeong.

The excavation of the Mado No. 5 vessel recovered 54 artifacts, including bronze vessels, rope, anchors and bundles of preserved rice straw. Most crucially, archaeologists unearthed 26 inscribed wooden tags, or "mokgan," that meticulously document the cargo's journey, according to the institute.

Deciphering the texts revealed that the cargo was collected in December 1207 — the dead of winter, when freezing gales typically kept sailors ashore. Experts deduce that Mado No. 5 set sail in the spring of 1208, carrying goods collected from the southwestern Jeolla Province toward the capital.

The discovery ties directly into maritime history written over a decade ago.

Mado No. 5 shares striking similarities with the Mado No. 1 shipwreck found in 2009, which sank under nearly identical circumstances in the spring of 1208. Handwriting analysis on the wooden tags even suggests that the same scribe recorded shipments for both vessels.

"Mado No. 1 and Mado No. 5 are presumed to have belonged to the exact same fleet, setting sail together before being struck by bad weather and sinking in the treacherous waters off Taean," said Jin Ho-shin, a senior researcher at the National Research Institute of Maritime Cultural Heritage.

Just 100 meters away from a previous wreck site, sonar imaging and exploratory dives also exposed the outline of Mado No. 6. Recovered items here included celadon oil bottles, ceramic jugs, and wooden slips bearing names like "Mok Ryang, head clerk of Saju" and "Hyeong Ji."

Saju — modern-day Sacheon — was home to Tongyangchang, one of the kingdom’s 13 official tax-grain storehouses. While the ship’s hull remains to be fully excavated, Mado No. 6 marks the first time a wreckage linked explicitly to the Gyeongsang region has been uncovered, broadening historians' understanding of nationwide trade routes.

Maritime authorities plan to launch a full-scale excavation of the Gaegyeong-bound vessel next year, continuing efforts to decode the maritime legacy resting on the seabed of Korea.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.