Paper short abstract:

Many Indo-Pacific beads were used in the regions between the southern part of Korean peninsula and Japanese archipelago from around 1st century BCE. The presenter indicates that the trade route of these beads was via Lelang commandery, rather than a direct one from South India or Southeast Asia.

Paper long abstract:

Many Indo-Pacific beads were used in the regions between the southern part of Korean peninsula and Japanese archipelago from around 1st century BCE. These beads were, of course, imported from South India or Southeast Asia, because people in Korean peninsula and Japanese archipelago could not make them by the dawn method at that time.

At present, there are two hypotheses regarding the trade route of Indo-Pacific beads. One is the hypothesis that these beads were imported directly from Jiangnan region, located in the southern part of China. The other is the hypothesis that they were imported via Lelang commandery, established in the northern part of Korean peninsula.Although some researchers indicated that it is very difficult to sail directly from Jiangnan region to the southern part of Korean peninsula or to Japanese archipelago, the latter hypothesis have been firmly supported.

In this study, I tried to re-examine the trade routes of the Indo-Pacific beads used in Korean peninsula and Japanese archipelago by comparing them with the beads used in Lelang commandery. As a result, the beads found in Lelang commandery and in the southern part of Korean peninsula are closely related. Therefore, there is a high possibility that Indo-Pacific beads used in the regions between Korean peninsula and Japanese archipelago were imported via Lelang commandery.