Park Han-sol reports on Korea's financial regulators, along with fintech and insurance. She previously wrote about the art world, from biennales and exhibitions to fairs and auctions, with a focus on Seoul and the figures shaping the scene. Before joining The Korea Times, she spent a year at ABC News' Seoul bureau, contributing to coverage of major Asia-Pacific events.
Ancient Goguryeo-era golden seal may fetch 6 figures at Hong Kong auction
A Goguryeo-era golden seal featuring a horse-shaped knob, which will go on the block at China Guardian Hong Kong's upcoming auction / Courtesy of China Guardian
By Park Han-sol
A golden seal, presumably from the Goguryeo Kingdom (37 B.C.E.-668 C.E.), is set to go under the hammer at a major auction in Hong Kong this weekend.
If authenticated, it would mark the first verified aureate seal from any ancient Korean kingdom — a discovery of profound historical significance.
Up for bidding at China Guardian Hong Kong’s 2025 spring sale “Important Private Asian Collection of Ancient Seals and Bronzes” on Sunday is a striking golden seal featuring a horse-shaped knob.
Standing 2.8 centimeters tall and weighing 88 grams, the relic bears a Chinese inscription reading “Marquis of Guiyi of Goguryeo, conferred by the Jin Dynasty.” Its estimated price ranges from $153,800 (221 million won) to $282,100.
The artifact is being offered by an anonymous Japanese collector, though details regarding its provenance and acquisition remain undisclosed.
Judging from its inscription, the seal may have been a formal symbol of political alliance between Goguryeo and China's Jin Dynasty. Courtesy of China Guardian
The term “Guiyi” was a diplomatic title often bestowed upon foreign rulers or officials who pledged allegiance to the Chinese imperial court. This seal may have been a formal symbol of political alliance between the Jin Dynasty and Goguryeo, one of the Three Kingdoms of ancient Korea.
“The inscription is finely carved, with well-balanced strokes and sharply defined lines — characteristic of official seal script from the Western Jin Dynasty (266-316),” Duan Kai, an associate researcher at the China Academy of Art, writes in the auction catalog.
However, not all scholars agree with this dating. Park Dae-jae, a professor of Korean history at Korea University, says that the seal may, in fact, have been conferred by the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420).
“The ‘Book of Jin’ contains no mention of diplomatic ties between Western Jin and Goguryeo. Historical records instead show that Goguryeo sent envoys to Eastern Jin in 336 and 343. Moreover, in 413, the year King Jangsu came to the throne, Eastern Jin officially recognized him as ‘King of Goguryeo,’” Park noted in a recent report.
“Facing growing pressure from northern nomadic tribes and waning political power, Eastern Jin likely used the bestowal of official seals as a diplomatic tool to appease or secure the allegiance of neighboring states like Goguryeo,” he added.
If authenticated, the artifact would represent a rare and tangible link to the intricate political maneuvering that shaped early East Asia — a time when the boundaries between alliance and vassalage were often fluid and strategically negotiated.
To date, six Goguryeo-related seals have been verified, none of which have been made of gold. None are housed in Korea, with at least three currently held in Chinese institutions, including national museums.