NOKORS REPORT DISCOVERY OF 9 ANCIENT TOMBS

North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported that archaeologists have discovered nine earthen tombs with stone chambers in Wolji-ri of Anak County, South Hwanghae Province, western North Korea.

A team from the Archaeological Institute of the Academy of Social Sciences (AIASS) has discovered the tombs as well as artifacts like a gold bell, a silver bracelet, a silver ring, coffin nails, and pieces of earthenware belonging to the Koguryo Kingdom, Yonhap News Agency reported.

In a related development, South Korean archaeologists also unearthed metal-type blocks and scientific relics from the 15th-16th centuries.

About 1,600 movable metal type blocks from the 15th and 16th centuries, including what are believed to be the oldest extant Korean-letter type pieces, have been found in downtown Seoul, heritage authorities said.

The Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA) also announced the discovery of copper items presumed to be parts of astronomical and water clocks produced during the early Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910).

The trove of scientific treasures was unearthed early this month from the remains of a 16th-century building in Insa-dong, known to be a commercial and cultural center of the capital during the Joseon era.

The metal type blocks -- about 1,000 Chinese letters and about 600 Korean letters -- include those believed to have been produced in the mid-1400s.

"The type blocks are various in size and shape. Most of them were found intact, but some were melted in a fire and stuck together," an official of the heritage agency said. It is the first time that a bunch of diverse metal-type pieces from the early Joseon era have been unearthed at once from the same site.

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