The Medieval Archaeology of Korea: Its Conceptual Framework and Examples

Abstract

The level of research in Korean medieval archaeology is considerably low in comparison to its importance. This is inevitable since there is only a short history of research of this period. However, more fundamentally, this is due to the lack of a thorough review and assessment of the conditions and status of the Korean medieval archaeology as well as the lack of research strategies and methodologies. Under such perception, this paper aims to present the conceptual framework of Korean medieval archaeology with concrete examples. First, I determined the temporal scope of medieval archaeology and explored its characteristics. Then, based on the characteristics of material sources and written records, I discussed the specific research strategies, topics, and methodologies with actual examples. Through this, I was able to confirm that medieval archaeology has the potential to provide new perspectives and methodologies not only in Korean history but in Korean archaeological research.

Keywords

• historical archaeology
• medieval archaeology
• medieval period
• methodology
• material sources
• and historical records