The beach might be a beautiful sight from far away. But if you look down at the ground, it is totally a different sight. The shore is filled with seaweed and garbage. Such a sight may put an end to our daydream but seashells never deceive us. Among the garbage that is washed ashore, there are always some unfamiliar shells. The fun part of it is to search through the conglomerate of garbage and seaweed with driftwood in one hand. I still remember the excitement I experienced at my hometown of Mutsu Bay when I discovered a cowry, a shell that could not possibly be from this place. I was overjoyed and yelled "Hurrah!".

Pieces of glass are another thing that are often found during these searches. Few of them maintain their original shape as a bottle. They are buffeted and broken into pieces, all forming a shape just like a candy ball sold at the local candy store. Their surfaces resemble frosted glass. If they were some minerals, it could worth some first-class jewels in the rough. Those were not the seashells I was looking for. But I sometimes stare at them, and by the time I came to myself, I was picking it up and putting it inside the plastic bag I had brought with me. Am I the only one who feels some exotic mood in the glass that were washed ashore?

When I stood on the beach by the Japan Sea, I thought of China, North Korea and Russia, all situated on the other side of the horizon. In fact, many objects are washed ashore from other countries. But glass is something special. Once they become broken into pieces, nationality no longer matters.

Such a feeling must also have been present even during antiquity.

I came upon an interesting book at a bookstore the other day. The title is Silla: the kingdom of Roman Culture. As one could see, it is a book demonstrating that Silla of ancient Korea was in fact within the Roman cultural region. The author is Tsuneo Yuri. A expert on glass, he plays a leading role in the research of glass products originating from the Silk Road. He was even a lecturer at NHK Human University.

Mr. Yui, with his long research, proved with hard evidence that the Silla of ancient Korea did have a very distinctive culture among East Asia. Furthermore, what is interesting is the hypotheses that during 4~6AD, Silla had directly absorbed the culture of the Roman Empire from beyond the Silk Road, rather than the culture of neighboring China.

Yui's hypothesis, based on his hard evidence of glass rather than philology, is very persuasive. There had been research that dealt with common characteristics between Silla and Roman culture, but not as thorough as this. I shall look forward to the heated debate between the historians of Japan and Korea. For those interested in ancient history, it is a book to read. It is worthwhile.

By the way, Silla is where the Hata-clan originated. I may be exaggerating to say that Hata-clan played a central role in Silla. But considering their scale, Silla could not be discussed without mentioning the Hata-clan. Furthermore, their place of origin is in West Asia. Yes, in Jerusalem. Jerusalem was within the territory of ancient Roman Empire. Obviously, its residents enjoyed Roman culture.

The Hatas were Primitive Christian Jews. But in their daily life, they must have accepted some Roman culture. In fact, The New Testament proves that Jews used Roman coins, spoke the Roman language and had contacts with Roman people. Above all, Christianity developed into a worldwide religion after it spread throughout the Roman Empire and was then designated as its state religion. We may safely say that Christian Jews and Roman culture were closely related.

The biggest reason of why Silla was included in the Roman cultural region could be explained with the Hata-clan. Isn't it possible that Primitive Christian Jews from West Asia brought Roman culture with them into the Korean Peninsula? I am sure they did.

Roman glass are unearthed not only in Silla but also in Japan. Yui points out that they were brought into Japan by immigrants from Silla. To be more exact, the Hata-clan. The Hata-clan: the Primitive Christian Jews who brought Roman culture into Japan.

Translated by Rie Ishida