From childhood, the people of Koguryo possessed of exceptional martial habit were all good at horse riding and they accepted it as an important requirement of life.
The mural paintings of Koguryo tombs including murals of dancing, Yaksuri mural paintings and murals of hunting give a lifelike portrayal of the life of Koguryo people who enjoyed riding with excellent horsemanship. In particular, the delightful scenes depicting some people hunting wild animals with bows and arrows while dashing vigorously on horseback show master horsemanship and archery of the Koguryo people in an intensive way.
Through such hunting, the Koguryo people further refined their riding skills and trained courage and matchless capability to defeat any aggressors at a single blow without fear.
The Koguryo people learned riding skills through their routine martial arts training as well as from hunting wild beasts.
The mural painting of Tokhungri tomb vividly depicts the horse-riding archery training on a fixed target. The wall is painted with 4 competitors, 2 judges and one scorer.
Although the mural shows the scene of horse-riding archery only, the Koguryo people further improved their riding skills through various martial arts training including racing, fencing and spearing on horseback.
As a result, the distinguished horsemanship of the Koguryo people played a decisive role in the war to defend the land and the dignity and sovereignty of the country and nation.
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