The purpose of this paper is to trace the origins of the mixed pattern consisting of tigers' stripes and leopards' spots commonly seen in paintings of the late Joseon period (1392-1910). This pattern originated from the belief among Koreans that tigers and leopards were animals of the same genus.
The mixed pattern of stripes and spots first appeared in Muyongchong suryeopdo (a wall painting depicting a hunting scene in the Muyongchong Tomb), which was made in the early fifth century. The yellow tiger depicted fleeing from a mounted hunter features a mixed pattern of stripes and spots. A similar pattern is also found in paintings on the walls of ancient tombs, such as Maesan-ri Sasinchong, Gangseo Daemyo, and Gangseo Jungmyo.
This type of pattern can also be seen on stone coffins from the Goryeo period (918-1392) that were used to keep cremated remains after a Buddhist style of funeral.
The white tigers portrayed on the outer side of the stone coffins, on which the Sasindo (Four Cardinal Deities) are inscribed, clearly display a mixed pattern of tiger's stripes and leopard's spots. The white tiger portrayed in the tomb of No Hoe-sin with murals (in Donghwa-ri, Wonju), which dates back to the early Joseon period (1456), is also notable for the use of this pattern. The oldest extant painting of a tiger from the Joseon period is Baegaek daeho ("Large old tiger with white brows") by the artist Go Un (pen-name: Hacheon). It is also the oldest known example to display the "striped and spotted" pattern among orthodox paintings of the Joseon period. In the ensuing period, these patterns appeared on the white tigers depicted by painters specializing in literati paintings and government-hired artists, as well as in Salleung dogam uigwe (Book of State Rites on the Construction of Royal Tombs). By the late Joseon period, folk paintings had become very popular. The use of the mixed pattern in Hojakdo (Tiger and Magpie) paintings increased noticeably, and it was also freely used anywhere on the tiger's body, including its forehead, tail, and back. This paper confirms that this type of pattern was used for more than one thousand years, starting with the yellow tiger in Muyongchong suryeopdo, and that the tradition was established in Korea without any foreign influence.
A folk saying from the Joseon period says, "When a tiger gives birth to cubs, it has three; the first one is a tiger, second a leopard, and the last a lynx." It is surmised that the pattern in question emerged naturally from our ancestors' view of tigers and leopards as animals of the same genus. This paper attempts to support this hypothesis with the relevant folk etymology, literature, and paintings.
The Korean word "beom" was used to refer to both tigers and leopards during the Joseon period. J ilinleishi (Things on Korea), a book written by Sun Mu of the Northern Song Dynasty of China about pronunciation in the Goryeo period, shows that the Korean word "beom" was used with this meaning during both the Goryeo and Joseon periods. Such identification is also confirmed in paintings from the Joseon period, such as Ssanghodo (Pair of Tigers), Gunhodo (Group of Tigers), and Yuhodo (Mother Tiger and Cubs). It appears that the artists did not even attempt to distinguish leopards from tigers. It is concluded that this is the background to the frequent appearance of the mixed pattern of tigers' stripes and leopards' spots in Korean paintings.
A newspaper article published on February 1, 1925 under the title Pyobeom (Leopard) Appears in Yangju shows that the locals did not distinguish between tigers and leopards. Another newspaper article appeared on May 1, 1925 under the title The Lynx, an Unfrightening Tiger. Based on these examples, it appears that the average Korean identified leopards or lynxes with tigers at least until this period. This paper also attempts to investigate examples of identifying tigers with leopards in modern records and documents.
A noteworthy point here is that this sentiment persists among modern-day Koreans. At the mention of the tiger's pattern, the leopard's pattern is likely to spring to the mind of the average Korean. Enter the term "tiger's pattern" in an Internet search engine and you will find many images of the leopard's skin pattern.
This paper attempts to trace the origin of the "Hopyo" pattern that appeared between the Goguryeo period and the late Joseon period and focuses on the fact that the pattern was not used temporarily but is a Korean traditional pattern embodying national sentiments.