While searching for forgotten landmines, South Korean troops happened upon the earliest Korean firearm ever discovered.
Research into the Korean firearm is ongoing, and no peer-reviewed paper on the find is yet available, but the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage has shared early analysis with the public ahead of an exhibition planned for next month.
Researchers spent three years investigating the artifact, poring over its inscriptions, comparing it to other pieces, and consulting historical documents. They discovered that the piece may date to some of the most interesting periods of Korea’s military history.
Finding the Firearm
The Korean Peninsula has a long history of conflict that technically continues to this day. While flare-ups between North and South Korea periodically raise security concerns, it is easy to forget that the Korean War never formally ended, with the 1953 armistice halting active hostilities without a peace treaty.
During the active period of the Korean War, between 1950 and 1953, an estimated 1.5 to 2 million mines were laid. Since then, intermittent periods of mine laying have compounded the problem, with North Korea even re-mining areas that had previously been cleared. It was during a sweep near Naju’s Mount Geumseong that South Korean soldiers discovered a weapon far older than the roughly 70-year-old mines they were searching for. They unearthed a 10-inch-long, two-pound bronze object dating to conflicts hundreds of years before the Korean War.
Korea’s Oldest Firearm
After three years of work, the find was identified as a “Hwangja Hwatong,” or Yellow-Character Hand Cannon. The artifact itself contained a remarkable amount of information, with 28 inscribed characters describing its name and weight, identifying the official in charge of production, and even naming a craftsman called Suk as its maker.
”This is an extraordinary discovery with immense academic, historical, and cultural value,” said Cho Mi-soon, director of the National Naju Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, during a press briefing at the National Palace Museum of Korea. “It comes from a crucial transitional period between the late Goryeo and early Joseon dynasties, when physical artifacts of firearms are exceptionally rare.”
Following metallurgical analysis and X-ray scanning, researchers determined that the firearm was made from a bronze alloy of copper, tin, and lead. While bronze itself was a common alloy, its relatively low tin content was notable because it may have helped the barrel withstand the pressures generated when the weapon was fired. The analysis also supported the artifact’s authenticity, as traces of sulfur and silver in the metal were consistent with casting processes of the period rather than a modern reproduction.
Conflict in Korea
According to researchers, the inscriptions indicate that the weapon was created during a Jeongsa year, corresponding to the Year of the Yin Fire Snake. In the traditional sexagenary cycle used in East Asian calendars, a Jeongsa year occurs once every 60 years. By comparing the inscription with historical evidence, researchers narrowed the weapon’s possible production date to either 1377 or 1437.
Both dates hold particular significance in Korea’s military history. If the firearm was produced in 1377, it would date to the period when the Goryeo Dynasty established an office dedicated to gunpowder weapons. A military official and inventor named Choe Mu-seon played a central role in developing Korea’s domestic production of gunpowder, knowledge of which had previously been closely guarded by China. At the time, Goryeo was facing repeated raids by Japanese pirates. Several years later, at the famous Battle of Jinpo in 1380, Korean forces employed gunpowder weapons against the raiders with devastating effect.
The other possible date, 1437, would place the weapon during the reign of King Sejong the Great, whose government oversaw major developments and standardization in Korean artillery. Sejong is still regarded as one of Korea’s most consequential rulers, overseeing advancements not only in military technology but also in science, culture, and the arts. Earlier in his reign, Korean forces also launched the 1419 Ōei Invasion of Tsushima, an expedition aimed at suppressing Japanese pirate activity that was followed by a period of more formalized relations and trade.
Regardless of which date proves correct, the artifact appears to be the oldest surviving Korean firearm yet discovered. The remaining question is just how old it is. Further research may allow historians to place this remarkable weapon more precisely within the development of gunpowder warfare on the Korean Peninsula.
Ryan Whalen covers science and technology for The Debrief. He holds an MA in History and a Master of Library and Information Science with a certificate in Data Science. He can be contacted at ryan@thedebrief.org, and follow him on Twitter @mdntwvlf.