New Perspectives on the Origin of Korean Acupuncture: Based on Materials from Xiaoyingzi Tomb, Yanji and Neighbouring Region.

This article discusses the development of early acupuncture needles as demonstrated by the artifacts excavated from the Northern part of the Yanji district, Jilin, China, during the Japanese colonial era (reported in 1941). Numerous bone needles, stone needles, and other medical devices were found in the Xiaoyingzi excavation. The stone needles from Xiaoyingzi can be categorized into three grades, based on length, of 8cm, 12-15cm, and 18cm. A set of round stones for massage were also discovered, along with obsidian blades. These relics were carefully stored in the middle of the body in the stone coffin. In addition to Xiaoyingzi, stone needles were also excavated along the lower valley region of the Tuman (Tumen, ) River. These facts indicate that the owner was involved in medical practice, and that medical procedures using stone needles were quite popular at the time. This article carefully investigates that the relics have nothing to do with weaving textile or military use. Current research on the origin of acupuncture has been confined either to stone needles from the prehistoric age or to bronze needles, as well as to literature from the Warring States period to the Han China, during which acupuncture technology was considerably expanded. However, substantial knowledge on the "gap" between stone needles and metal needles has been procured through the analysis of Xiaoyingzi, Yanji. The findings of Xiaoyingzi are also significant in providing a more detailed reconstruction of the development of acupuncture in East Asia and emergence of acupuncture throughout history. A large amount of medical items (stone and bone needles, cases for needles, massage stone type bianshi, and etc.), have been excavated from Xiaoyingzi and other neighbouring sites, Along with geographic and ecological factors, this archeological data strongly suggests the medical tradition of using acupuncture needles was practiced around Tumen River basin in the Bronze Age (10th century B.C.).

Genetic analysis of mitochondrial DNA from ancient Equus caballus bones found at archaeological site of Joseon dynasty period capital area.

OBJECTIVE: To understand the domestication and spread of horses in history, genetic information is essential. However, mitogenetic traits of ancient or medieval horses have yet to be comprehensively revealed, especially for East Asia. This study thus set out to reveal the maternal lineage of skeletal horse remains retrieved from a 15th century archaeological site (Gongpyeongdong) at Old Seoul City in South Korea. METHODS: We extracted DNA from the femur of Equus caballus (SNU-A001) from Joseon period Gongpyeongdong site. Mitochondrial (mt) DNA (HRS 15128-16116) of E. caballus was amplified by polymerase chain reaction. Cloning and sequencing were conducted for the mtDNA amplicons. The sequencing results were analyzed by NCBI/BLAST and phylogenetic tool of MEGA7 software. RESULTS: By means of mtDNA cytochrome b and D-loop analysis, we found that the 15th century Korean horse belonged to haplogroup Q representing those horses that have historically been raised widely in East Asia. CONCLUSION: The horse is unique among domesticated animals for the remarkable impact it has on human civilization in terms of transportation and trade. Utilizing the Joseonperiod horse remains, we can obtain clues to reveal the genetic traits of Korean horse that existed before the introduction of Western horses.

Paleoparasitological report on the stool from a Medieval child mummy in Yangju, Korea.

Previous studies have successfully shown evidence for parasitic infections in human remains from various archaeological sites. However, in the case of Korea, since there have been very few paleoparasitological reports published, pre-20th century parasitic infection patterns remain obscure. Therefore, in order to partly fill this gap, we are reporting on a case of paleoparasitic infection from the feces of a 15th century child mummy from Yangju, Korea. In the course of the present study, we found the eggs of Clonorchis sinensis, Ascaris lumbricoides, and Trichuris trichiura in the feces of the mummy. Trichuris trichiura eggs were found in far greater numbers than other parasite eggs; in fact, intact bipolar plugs were clearly observed and even the larvae were still visible in some eggs. The eggs of C. sinensis and A. lumbricoides were also well preserved, though not in as great a number. Since we could find a number of well-preserved larvae-containing eggs, we are encouraged that successful extraction, amplification, and sequence determination of ancient DNA from the paleoparasite eggs might be possible in future studies. With additional paleoparasitological investigation using feces from Korean mummies, we hope that a history of parasite infection in Korea will be reconstructed.