Northeast Asian History Network

Ox carriage in the portrait on the northern wall of the main chamber

This is a detailed view of the ox carriage depicted in the portrait on the northern wall of the main chamber in Tokhung-ri Tomb. In ancient times, a carriage was an important form of transportation for the noble class. An ox carriage was generally used by women, and men either rode horse carriages or rode a horse directly. As seen in the image, the First Lady's carriage features veils at the front and back, and the top is covered by an awning-like sunshade (used by nobles in ancient times for sun protection, similar to a modern-day parasol). Remarkably, the black sunshade stretches all the way to the ox, considered to be the modern-day engine of the carriage, to protect it from the heat of the sun. This particular type of sunshade is called an angled sunshade, featuring a slight angle in the middle rather than the usual straight-line configuration.
As no examples of Koguryo era ox carriages exist today, this painting is considered to be a very valuable resource for understanding the carriages of the time.