The inscription of King Haotai's stele is engraved in the vertical column, surrounded by inscriptions, with 44 lines, each line contains 41 characters. The original inscription totals 1,775 characters, of which 141 characters have fallen off and cannot be read.
The inscription on the stele is in Chinese characters and is a strict official script. Parts of seal script and regular script are also retained, forming a square and upright calligraphy style. It is one of the important examples of the transition of Chinese calligraphy from official script to regular script. The calligraphy of the inscription is strict and dignified, simple and elegant.
The content of the inscription is divided into three parts: the first part records the myths and legends of the founding of Goguryeo, and briefly describes the deeds of King Haodae; the second part records the conquest of Baekje, the rescue of Silla, the defeat of Japanese pirates, and the conquest of King Haodae. During the process of Dong Fuyu, he captured the city and captured the livestock. In the third part, based on the legacy of King Hao Tai, the origin and family number of the tomb keeper of King Hao Tai were recorded in detail, and the decree not to resell the tomb keeper was engraved.
The first paragraph of King Haotai’s inscription narrates the myths and legends of the founding of Goguryeo: The founder of Goguryeo was King Zoumou. From Bei Fuyu, the daughter of Hebo, the son of the Emperor of Heaven. He cut his egg and came to the world, and he was born with holy virtues. ...Wang Linjin said: "I am the son of Huangtian, my mother is a girl from Hebo, and I am King Zou Mou. Join the floating turtles for me." In response, he joined the floating turtles and built the ferry. In the Feiliu Valley, west of Hu Ben, a capital was built on the city mountain.
According to this, King Zou Mou, the founder of Goguryeo, must have come from Buyu in the north, and went south from Buyu to Zubengchuan in the Hunjiang River Basin, which is now Huanren Wunu Mountain City, and founded the Goguryeo regime.
King Haodae reigned for 22 years, and the country of Goguryeo had political stability, economic prosperity, and strong military strength. In order to commemorate the achievements of King Haotai's life and inscribe the tomb guard Yanhu, this monument was erected.
The second paragraph records the wars and military activities of King Haotai in his life of conquering the east and west and expanding the territory in a larger space.
The inscription mainly talks about the war against Baekje and Japanese, as well as the rescue of Silla. Baekje and Silla are two countries in the southern part of the Korean Peninsula, west and east of the Nakdong River; Wa is an ancient country on the Japanese archipelago.
The Japanese crossed the sea to the Korean Peninsula many times to invade Silla and Baekje, and joined forces with Baekje to invade the southern border of Goguryeo. Therefore, King Goodai personally led an army to defeat the Japanese pirates, conquered Baekje, and captured 64 cities and 1,400 villages in Baekje.
In his life, King Haotai conquered cities and territories and displayed powerful martial arts. Combining the inscriptions with relevant documents, we can see the entirety of his military career.
The third paragraph inscribes the smokers who guard the tomb of King Tai, 30 national cigarette smokers, 300 smokers, and 330 smokers. The status of the national cigarette is slightly higher than that of the Kanyan, and the ratio is one to ten, which has become the epitome of the social system of Goguryeo.
At the same time, the stele is also engraved with the teachings of King Haotai and the system of guarding the tomb, which is of great significance for understanding the social life of Goguryeo and the royal funeral system.