• MISULJARYO - National Museum of Korea Art Journal
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• v.98
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• pp.226-241
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• 2020

Located on the right side of the third floor of the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, the "Art of Central Asia" exhibition boasts the world's finest collection of artworks and artifacts from the Silk Road. Every item in the collection has been classified by region, and many of them were collected in the early twentieth century through archaeological surveys led by Russia's Pyotr Kozlov, Mikhail Berezovsky, and Sergey Oldenburg. Some of these artifacts have been presented around the world through special exhibitions held in Germany, France, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Korea, Japan, and elsewhere. The fruits of Russia's Silk Road expeditions were also on full display in the 2008 exhibition The Caves of One Thousand Buddhas - Russian Expeditions on the Silk Route on the Occasion of 190 Years of the Asiatic Museum, held at the Hermitage Museum. Published in 2018 by the Shanghai Chinese Classics Publishing House in collaboration with the Hermitage Museum, Kuche Art Relics Collected in Russia introduces the Hermitage's collection of artifacts from the Kuche (or Kucha) region. While the book focuses exclusively on artifacts excavated from the Kuche area, it also includes valuable on-site photos and sketches from the Russian expeditions, thus helping to enhance readers' overall understanding of the characteristics of Kuche art within the Buddhist art of Central Asia. The book was compiled by Dr. Kira Samosyuk, senior curator of the Oriental Department of the Hermitage Museum, who also wrote the main article and the artifact descriptions. Dr. Samosyuk is an internationally renowned scholar of Central Asian Buddhist art, with a particular expertise in the art of Khara-Khoto and Xi-yu. In her article "The Art of the Kuche Buddhist Temples," Dr. Samosyuk provides an overview of Russia's Silk Road expeditions, before introducing the historical development of Kuche in the Buddhist era and the aspects of Buddhism transmitted to Kuche. She describes the murals and clay sculptures in the Buddhist grottoes, giving important details on their themes and issues with estimating their dates, and also explains how the temples operated as places of worship. In conclusion, Dr. Samosyuk argues that the Kuche region, while continuously engaging with various peoples in China and the nomadic world, developed its own independent Buddhist culture incorporating elements of Gandara, Hellenistic, Persian, and Chinese art and culture. Finally, she states that the culture of the Kuche region had a profound influence not only on the Tarim Basin, but also on the Buddhist grottoes of Dunhuang and the central region of China. A considerable portion of Dr. Samosyuk's article addresses efforts to estimate the date of the grottoes in the Kuche region. After citing various scholars' views on the dates of the murals, she argues that the Kizil grottoes likely began prior to the fifth century, which is at least 100 years earlier than most current estimates. This conclusion is reached by comparing the iconography of the armor depicted in the murals with related materials excavated from the surrounding area (such as items of Sogdian art). However, efforts to date the Buddhist grottoes of Kuche must take many factors into consideration, such as the geological characteristics of the caves, the themes and styles of the Buddhist paintings, the types of pigments used, and the clothing, hairstyles, and ornamentation of the depicted figures. Moreover, such interdisciplinary data must be studied within the context of Kuche's relations with nearby cultures. Scientific methods such as radiocarbon dating could also be applied for supplementary materials. The preface of Kuche Art Relics Collected in Russia reveals that the catalog is the first volume covering the Hermitage Museum's collection of Kuche art, and that the next volume in the series will cover a large collection of mural fragments that were taken from Berlin during World War II. For many years, the whereabouts of these mural fragments were unknown to both the public and academia, but after restoration, the fragments were recently re-introduced to the public as part of the museum's permanent exhibition. We look forward to the next publication that focuses on these mural fragments, and also to future catalogs introducing the artifacts of Turpan and Khotan. Currently, fragments of the murals from the Kuche grottoes are scattered among various countries, including Russia, Germany, and Korea. With the publication of this catalog, it seems like an opportune time to publish a comprehensive catalog on the murals of the Kuche region, which represent a compelling mixture of East-West culture that reflects the overall characteristics of the region. A catalog that includes both the remaining murals of the Kizil grottoes and the fragments from different parts of the world could greatly enhance our understanding of the murals' original state. Such a book would hopefully include a more detailed and interdisciplinary discussion of the artifacts and murals, including scientific analyses of the pigments and other materials from the perspective of conservation science. With the ongoing rapid development in western China, the grotto murals are facing a serious crisis related to climate change and overcrowding in the oasis city of Xinjiang. To overcome this challenge, the cultural communities of China and other countries that possess advanced technology for conservation and restoration must begin working together to protect and restore the murals of the Silk Road grottoes. Moreover, centers for conservation science should be established to foster human resources and collect information. Compiling the data of Russian expeditions related to the grottoes of Kuche (among the results of Western archaeological surveys of the Silk Road in the early twentieth century), Kuche Art Relics Collected in Russia represents an important contribution to research on Kuche's Buddhist art and the Silk Road, which will only be enhanced by a future volume introducing the mural fragments from Germany. As the new authoritative source for academic research on the artworks and artifacts of the Kuche region, the book also lays the groundwork for new directions for future studies on the Silk Road. Finally, the book is also quite significant for employing a new editing system that improves its academic clarity and convenience. In conclusion, Dr. Kira Samosyuk, who planned the publication, deserves tremendous praise for taking the research of Silk Road art to new heights.

• KOREAN JOURNAL OF CROP SCIENCE
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• v.5 no.1
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• pp.1-35
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• 1969

Attempts were made to obtain the fundamental knowledge on the quantitative constitution status of leaves and stem of elongating node-part, and the relationships between these morphological characteristics along with the nitrogen contents of leaves and grain yield were examined varing application amounts of nitrogen in rice plant. I. The agronomic characteristics of leaves and nodes of elongation node-part (4-node parts from the top of stem) were observed at heading stage with 20 leading rice varieties of Kang Won district. The results are summarized as follows: 1. Leaf area magnitude of the flag and the fourth leaf was smaller than that of the second and the third with the average value of flag leaf 18.61 $cm^2$, the second leaf 21.84 $cm^2$, the third 21.52 $cm^2$ and the fourth 18.56 $cm^2$. The weight of leaf blade showed an isotonic tendency with the magnitude of leaf area with the value of the flag leaf 97.0 mg, the second leaf 117.1 mg, the third 115.4 mg, and the fourth 95.3 mg. The weight of each leaf sheath was remarkably larger at the higher node-part than at the lower node-part of the stem with the value of flag leaf sheath 176.3 mg, the second 163.7 mg, the third 163.4 mg and the fourth 123.9 mg. Accordingly, the total leaf weight of each part was larger at the second and the third leaf than at the first and the fourth. Total plant weight of each part (weight of leaf blade, leaf sheath, and culm) also was larger at the middle node-part. 2. Coefficients of variation for the varietal differences of the morphological characteristics of elongating node-part were 12.75% for the leaf area, 15.29% for the weight of leaf blade, 15.90%, for the weight of leaf sheath, 11.42% for the weight of internode, 15.45% for the leaf weight (leaf blade ＆ leaf sheath) and 13.24% for the straw weight. And these coefficient values of the most characteristics were, on the whole, smaller at the second and the third node-part than at the first and the fourth node-part, but the coefficient value of the internode weight was rather small at the third and fourth node-part. 3. Constitutional ratio of each plant organ to the total plant weight in term of dry matter weight (excluding head and root wight) was 39.2% for the leaf sheath, 34.2% for the culm, 26.6% for the leaf blade. And ocnstitutional ratio of leaf sheath in term of dry matter weight was larger at the higher position in contrast with that of culm. 4. Average weight ration of leaf blade to culm, leaf sheath to culm, leaf blades to sheath and the leaf blades to culm plus leaf sheath were 77.7 %, 114.5%, 67.9% and 36.2%, respectively. With regard to the position of the plant organ, the weight ratio of leaf blade to culm and that of leaf sheath to culm were larger at higher part in contrast with that of leaf blade to leaf sheath. 5. Generally, there founded deep relationships between grain yield and each morphological characteristics of plant organ of elongating node-part as follows; Correlation coefficient between total area of 4 leaves (from flag to the fourth leaf) and grain yield was ${\gamma}$=0.666$^{**}$ In regard to the position of leaves, correlation coefficient values of flag, the second, the third and the fourth leaf were ${\gamma}$=0.659$^{**}$, ${\gamma}$=0.609$^{**}$, ${\gamma}$=0.464$^{*}$ and ${\gamma}$=0.523$^{*}$, respectively. Correlation coefficient between total weight of leaf blades and the grain yield was ${\gamma}$=0.678$^{**}$. In regard to the position of leaves, that of flag leaf was ${\gamma}$=0.691$^{**}$, and ${\gamma}$=0.654$^{**}$ for the second leaf, ${\gamma}$=0.570$^{**}$ for the third, and ${\gamma}$=0.544$^{**}$ for the fourth. Correlation between the weight of leaves (blade weight plus sheath weight) and the grain yield showed similar values. In the relationship between plant weight and grain yield there also was significant correlation, but with highly significant value only for the first node-part. There appeared correlation between total weight of leaf sheath and grain yield with the value of ${\gamma}$=0.572$^{**}$ and in regard to the position of each leaf sheath the values were ${\gamma}$=0.623$^{**}$ for the flag leaf, ${\gamma}$=0.486$^{**}$ for the second leaf, ${\gamma}$=0.513$^{**}$ for the third, ${\gamma}$=0.450$^{**}$ for the fourth. However, there was no significant correlation between culm weight and grain yield. 6. With respect to in gain yield, varietal differences in magnitude of leaf area, weight of leaf blade, leaf weight per unit area, weight of leaf sheath, culm weight, total leaf and stem weight were larger in the case of high yielding varieties and decreased in accordance with decreasing yield. And this tendency also was shown in the varietal differences of magnitude of each part. Variation in magnitude of each part for the leaf area, weight of leaf blade, culm weight was significantly small in high yielding varieties compared to low yielding varieties. 7. Plant constitutional ratio of each organ of the elongating node-part in term of weight magnitnde varied to som extent according to varieties indicating leaf blade 27.6%, leaf sheath 39.5%, culm 32.9% in the case of high yielding varieties, leaf blade 25.5%, leaf sheath 38.1%, culm 36.4% in the case of low yielding varieties, and medium yielding varieties showed intermadiate values. 8. Far higher values of the weight ration of leaf blade to culm and leaf sheath to culm were given to the high yielding varieties compared to low yielding varieties. And medium yielding varieties showed intermadiate values. II. Effects of application rate of nitrogen on the morphological characteristics of the elongating node-part, nitrogen content of leaf blade, and their relation with the grain yield of the rice were observed with 3 rice varieties; Shin No.2, Shirogane, and Jinheung varying application amounts of nitrogen as 8kg, 12kg and 16kg per 10 are. 1. As for the variation of morphological magnitude s affected by the amounts of nitrogen application, total leaf area (4 leaves from the flag leaf) increased to 16.5% at 12kg N plot, and about 30% at 16kg N polt compared to 8kg N plot and total weight of leaf blade also increased to similar extent, respectively, in contrast with weight of leaf sheath increasing 4.9% and 7.8%, respectively. However, the weight of culm decreased to 1.5% and 11.2%at the 12kg N plot and 16kg N plot, respectively, and these decreasing rate was noted at the nodes of lower part. 2. As for the verietal differences in variation of morphological magnitude as affected by the amount of nitrogen fertilization, leaf area coefficient value of variation of the total leaf area was 15.40% for Shin No. 2, 12.87% for Shirogane, and 10.99% for Jinheung. With respect to the position of nodes, the largest variation of leaf blade magnitude was observed at the fourth for Shin No. 2, the second for Shirogan, and flag leaf for Jinheung. And there also was an isotonic varietal difference in the weight of leaf blade. Variation in total culm weight showed varietal differences with the coefficient value of 7.72% for Shin No.2, 12.11% for Shirogane, and 0.94% for Jinheung. There also was varietal differences in the variation according to the position of nodes. 3. Variation of each elongating node-part related to the fertilization amount decreased with the increase of fertilization amount in the items of leaf area, weight of leaf sheath, culm weight, but weight of leaf sheath varied more at heavier fertilization than at others. 4. Constitutional ratio of each organ excluding head also varied with fertilization amount; constitutional ratio of leaf blade increased much with the increasing amount of fertilization in contrast with the response of culm eight. However, constitutional ration of the weight of leaf sheath was not much affected. 5. Lower value of the ration of leaf blade to culm was given to the 8kg N per 10 are plot, and the ratio of leaf blade to leaf sheath decreased with the increasing amount of fertilization in contrast with the increase in the ratio of leaf sheath to culm. however, the ration of leaf blade to culm plus leaf sheath decreased. 6. With the increase of nitrogen fertilization, leaf area, weight of leaf blade and leaf sheath increased. Accordingly, grin yield also increased to some extent. It was noted that culm weight was changed inversely to the changes in grain yield, but the degree of this variation varied with varietal characteristics. 7. Nitrogen content of leaves at heading and fruiting stage varied with the fertilization amount, and average nitrogen content of leaves of the varieties used 2.19%, 2.49% and 2.74% at the plot of 8kg N, and 12kg N and 16kg N per 10 are, respectively, at heading time, and 0.80%, 0.92% and 1.03% at each plot at fruiting stage. Thus, nitrogen content of leaves increased much with the increasing amount of fertilization, and higher value was given to the leaves on the higher position of elongating node-part. 8. There also was variation of nitrogen content of leaves in accordance with the varieties. However higher grain yield was obtained from the plants retaining higher nitrogen content in leaves at heading or fruiting stage.