by John Carter Covell & Alan Covell

size: 24x18cm 114pages. hardcover. publisher: Hollym, 1993.(reprint)

About this book
In this fascinating and well-researched book the authors compare the sculpture, architecture, painting, ceramics, and courtly dress of Japan with Korea especially the Paekche kingdom to prove that Korea had brought "civilization" to pre-historic Japan. The archeological evidence presented trace the Japanese imperial line directly to the Korean conquerors of Japan. Early, as well as current Japanese official history cover up much of this evidence. For example, there is an iron sword in the Shrine of the Puyo Rock Deity in Asuka, Japan which is the third most important historical Shinto shrine. This sword which is inaccessible to the public has a Korean Shamanstic shape and is inscribed with Chinese characters of gold, which include a date corresponding to 369 A.D. At the time, only the most educated elite in the Paekche Kingdom knew Chinese and hardly any of the people living in Japan were literate in Chinese. Contrary to official Japanese court histories which write about Empress Jingu as a Japanese who conquered Korea, Empress Jingu was actually a young princess from Puyo (an early kingdom in the Korean peninsula) who led a group of "Horseriders" to conquer Japan. This sword along with other archeological evidence establishes this fact. Excavating one of the "Horseriders" tombs, Nintoka would reveal a great deal about the connections between early Japan and the Paekche kingdom. However, the Japanese Imperial Household refuses requests to do so. "According to Professor Ryusaku Tsunoda, a former Japanese history professor of Columbia University: 'There was an opportunity, while repairs were being made, to look inside. people were amazed to see how many objects of continental craftsmanship it contained. The ruler...lived in the fourth century. The buried treasures were evidences of his relationship with the kingdoms of the Korean peninsula.'" Until the Japanese are willing to acknowledge this history, it will remain as Japan's hidden history. LC#: 83-81484