Near the town of Kangso, southwest of Pyongyang, three earthen mounds rise from the farmland of the Taedong river plain, and inside them lie some of the most beautiful paintings of ancient East Asia. These are the Kangso tombs of the Koguryo kingdom, which ruled much of northern Korea and Manchuria from the first centuries AD until 668. The inner chamber walls are painted with the four guardian animals: the Blue Dragon of the east, the White Tiger of the west, the Red Phoenix of the south and the Black Tortoise of the north, intertwined with a snake. The colours, though faded, are still vivid, and the line work has an energy that photographs barely capture. The Complex of Koguryo Tombs was inscribed by UNESCO in 2004.
Koguryo was one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, alongside Paekche and Silla, and it was a powerful military state that resisted invasions by Chinese dynasties several times. The tombs in this complex, scattered around Pyongyang and Nampo, show scenes of daily life, hunting, dance, warriors and celestial beings, as well as the guardian animals. They are a crucial source for understanding the culture of early Korea and its connections with China and Central Asia.
The reality for riders, however, is stark. North Korea does not permit independent travel. Foreign visitors can only enter on organised tours, accompanied by official guides at all times, and riding your own motorcycle on North Korean roads is not possible for ordinary travellers. Travel restrictions have been very tight in recent years, and many governments advise against all travel to the country. Even if you visit on a tour, access to the tomb interiors is limited to protect the paintings, and you may see replicas rather than the originals.
So this is a place to know about rather than to ride to. If you are curious, look for published reproductions of the paintings or the replicas displayed in museums in South Korea and elsewhere. The guardian animals of the Kangso tombs, especially the Black Tortoise and Snake, have become iconic images in Korean art history. Perhaps one day the roads across the Taedong plain will be open to riders, and the mounds of Kangso will be a stop on a long ride through a united peninsula.