Northeast Asian History Network

Eastern Wall of the Eastern Auxiliary Chamber - Carriage House - Carriage 1

This is a detailed view of a carriage depicted on the eastern wall of the eastern auxiliary chamber. This carriage is surmised to have been used by the entombed nobleman. The most prominent distinction is that it is an open-type carriage. The back of the carriage features a rectangular backrest similar to a folding screen. Notably, the sides of the carriage are curved rather than linear, and the ends are curling inward like a bow. It's apparent even at a glance that this is a high-end carriage built with a high degree of craftsmanship. The top of the carriage features an awning-like canopy for sun protection. This particular type of sunshade is called an angled sunshade, featuring a slight angle in the middle rather than the usual straight-line configuration. The angled sunshade extends all the way to the front to protect the ox from the heat of the sun, considered to be the modern-day engine of the carriage. The axle at the center of the carriage wheels is connected to struts that support the angled sunshade and bars that connect to the yoke (wooden beam fitted to one or more to enable pulling a load) for the ox that would pull the carriage. Red straps can be seen attaching the yoke to the cart.
As no examples of Koguryo era ox carriages exist today, this painting in Anak Tomb No. 3 is considered to be a very valuable resource for understanding the carriages of the time.