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[caption id="attachment_3403" align="aligncenter" width="320"] Sixth-century wooden sticks with writings on them found in the Seongsan Sanseong in Haman County, South Gyeongsang © Yonhap.[/caption]&#160;A sixth-century piece of writing in which a regional government official pleads for forgiveness for his mistake in handling state affairs to a high-ranking central government official has been found at the site of Seongsan Sanseong (n.d.e.城山山城) (or Seongsan Mountain Fortress) in Haman County, South Gyeongsang.  What is notable is that the writing is written on a piece of wood. Known as mokgan (n.d.e. 木簡) in Korean, such wood sticks with writings on them were used before paper was made. They were in use until the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) because wood was more durable and cheaper than paper.  On Jan. 4, officials of the Gaya National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage announced results of the latest round of archaeological explorations at Seongsan Sanseong, which has lasted from 1991 to 2016. They said the highlight of the last round, which took place over two years starting in 2014, was the 23 mokgan. The sixth-century writing, which is one of the finds, is rare in many ways. (By Kim Hyung-eun)Lire la suite ici.