Lacquered Bronze Stirrups

The part of a saddle that a rider steps on when mounting or riding a horse is called a deungja, or stirrup. Among these, the hodeung, or "jar stirrup", has a foot-rest widened like a pouch so that the foot can be easily inserted or withdrawn; it developed from the ring-shaped yundeung, or "wheel stirrup", with a round frame used in the Three Kingdoms period. This hodeung measures 14.7 cm in height, 12.1 cm in width and 14.9 cm in length. It has a rectangular projection at the top for easy attachment to the saddle, and a small hole pierced in the lower part. The surface is finely engraved with floral, diagonal-line, flame and fish-bone motifs, over which black lacquer has been applied. Few stirrups survive from the Unified Silla period, and this is a rare example with black lacquer applied over the entire inner and outer surface. It is therefore a work of great scholarly value, both for its rarity and for the study of the development of Unified Silla metal crafts.

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Where it is

Region

Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Treasure · 보물