영국 왕립아시아학회(The Royal Asiatic Society, United Kingdom)석학회원인 교양대학 데이비드 윌리엄 김(David William Kim)교수는 전세계의 6만개 고인돌 중에 유독 4만개 이상이 중국 산동반도, 북한, 남한 (강화도, 제주도, 울릉도 포함)에 분포되어 있는 현상을 고조선의 역사적 사실을 기반으로 지금까지 외국에 발표되지 않았던 후기 신석기 고인돌 형태(c. 3100–300 BCE)와 고조선(2333–108 BCE)의 연관성을 세계 최초로 문화고고학적 방법으로 주장한 가설이 동아시아 고대역사 분야에 새로운 방향을 제시하여 관련 영국의 Stonehenge (3000 BC–2000 BCE)와 프랑스의 Carnac Stones (Steudadoù Karnag: 4500–3300 BCE) 학자들 가운데 인정받아 미국의 International Journal of Critical Cultural Studies에 출판하게 되었다. 아래는 원문 (Goindols and Prehistoric East Asian Life: The Secret Landscape of Dolmens on the Korean Peninsula) 일부 내용을 간단히 소개하고 있다:
 

 
 Asso. Prof. Dr. David William Kim 
 

Megalithic cultures have spread to every location in which there are traces of prehistoric humans on earth. The Korean Peninsula is no exception. The different types of menhir, cromlechs (stone circles), and stone images are not currently popular in English literature. However, approximately 40,000 dolmens (out of 60,000 worldwide) are in this region alone. Indeed, megaliths have been found all over Korea, including the Jeju and Ulleung Islands. Additionally, historical and cultural studies suggest that these sacred sites and their stones are relics dating from at least the late (East Asian) Neolithic Age to the late Bronze Age (c. 3100–300 BCE). Dolmen shapes are divided into table-style, draughtboard-style, and open-style, with the three dolmens of Hwasun, Gochang, and Ganghwa Island even recognized as a World Heritage (UNESCO) site. This article explores the socio-cultural map of the Korean dolmens. It also argues that the dolmens’ purpose (e.g., tombs, Feng-Shui, and ritual), their application of cup-marks (leadership, astrology, and healing), and ancient Korean history have significant implications for understanding the prehistoric East Asian life of Gojoseon (2333–108 BCE).

      
Figure 1: Date and Regions of Dolmens
 

Not all dolmens (c. 40,000) on the Korean Peninsula have been properly explored or measured in this article. However, the prehistoric landscapes of Northeast China (Liaodong Peninsula and Jilin Province), North Korea, and South Korea are considered in relation to the socio-cultural life of ancient Korea (Gojoseon: 2333–108 BCE). This age was that of predominant power from the late (East Asian) Neolithic Age to the late Bronze Age. The characteristics and figures of the Korean dolmens demonstrate the unique identity of the local ethnic culture, despite ongoing political and historical debates. The origin of these local dolmens was not seen as an autogenous emergence but was commonly assumed to have been derived from Siberian (Karasuk and Targar) culture. Although it has not yet been proved, the socio-cultural transmission of Bronze Age Koreans would have linked to tribes from the other parts of world, including Europe.

 

Figure 2: Three Types of Dolmens in Korea
 

The excavated relics of the dolmens indicated the social status of the person or internal beliefs of the communities. For example, items such as stone knives, grindstone axes, plane blades, wheels, and fishnets relate to daily life. Objects like ground stone swords, ground stone arrowheads, red pottery, bronze implements, and accessories are presumed to have been vital to ritual activities (Kim 2000). The archeological results of human bones, including female teeth and babies’ bodies, supported the view that some dolmen sites would have been burial sites for a patriarch or matriarch. Further, the dolmens have three types: table-type, draughtboard-type, and open-type, even though the question of how they differ has not been fully demonstrated. Nonetheless, it has been confirmed that the establishment of a dolmen site would have been a significant community project, one in which many adults would have been harmoniously involved to relocate the various stones (granite, rhyolite, or gneiss) to their designated places.

Table 1: Representative Dates of South Korean Dolmens
Source: Nesterkina et al. 2017

The dolmens of Ganghaw, Hawsun, and Gochang are the most representative, and have been named as world heritage sites by UNESCO. The East Asian principle of Feng Shui, which prioritizes the direction of both wind and water (nature), has been commonly applied to the sacred Korean dolmens. Oriental geomancy relates to the theory of earthly and heavenly energy for the metaphysical welfare of human beings and the deceased’s souls. Some dolmens functioned as a tribal altar for promoting the health and prosperity of an individual or a community. Local dolmens have cup-marks on the surfaces of the main capstones. Nevertheless, many questions persist concerning the role of the cup-marks. While they are presumed to symbolize power or leadership, their unique shapes also reflect the practice of astronomy and astrology. Star worship, such as the Big Dipper, is connected not only with a desire for longevity but also with the fortune of healing. The mystery of the red ochre around human bodies suggests that prehistoric people believed in the regeneration of human souls, or at least in life after death. Thus, although a systematic excavation of Korean dolmens has not been properly conducted because of geopolitical border issues between South and North Korea and between North Korea and China, the insight this article offers is the hypothesis that the Neolithic dolmens of the Korean Peninsula should be evaluated as a socio-archeological testament of the first tribal kingdom of Gojoseon in the ancient history of East Asia.

For more details, please see https://cgscholar.com/bookstore/works/goindols-and-prehistoric-east-asian-life?category_id=cgrn