As home to numerous Buddhist relics, Mount Namsan is almost like
an open-air museum, where the essence of Silla is vibrant and tangible.
Relics and ruins include Najeong Well, a central feature in the birth legend
of the kingdom; Poseokjeong Pavilion, the site where the Silla dynasty era
came to an end; the seated stone Buddha at Mireuk Valley; the standing
stone Buddhist Triad in Bae-ri; and the seated Buddha carved in relief on a
stone pillar near Chilburam Hermitage.
1) Relief of Buddha in Borisa Temple (Tangible Cultural Property No. 193)
It is said that in Sorabol, the capital of ancient Silla, a total of “178,936 houses were connected to each other with tiled roof and each house cooked rice with charcoal.” Moreover, “temples were scattered just like stars in the sky, and pagodas looked like flying wild geese in line.”
A thousand years ago, Gyeongju was already the capital of our country for a thousand years. Just thinking about this city is overwhelming which makes one wonder if there is such a similar city in the whole world.
When your imagination has run out of 2%, it is a place to visit to rejuvenate your imagination. As one walks along the trail by the southern hillside from Porisa (Temple), one could see a stunning view of the whole area centering on Mt. Jin and Mt. Nang.
Here stands a Borisa Maaeseokbul (Temple), a Buddha statue with a merciful smile.
It feels as though the statue has been still overlooking the city from a thousand years ago.
2) Seated stone Buddha statue at Mireuk Valley ( Treasure No. 136)
The ‘Seated Stone Buddha Statue at Porisa (Temple)’ is well known for its size, even if it has been built just recently.
It is the largest in scale among the existing statues in Mt. Nam.
Given the location details of the 49th King Hongang’s Tomb and the 50th King Chonggang’s Tomb, it was referred to be ‘in the southeastern direction of Porisa (Temple) in〈Samgukyusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms)〉.
Hence, the temple could have been a very important one. This is evidenced by the presence of a Seated Stone Buddha Statue in the courtyard.
Thanks to the appearance of the statue – with an elegant yet merciful face, it is often the first to be introduced when introducing stone Buddha statues in Mt. Nam.
By its side is the hem of its dress pleasantly flowing with magnificent nimbus.
On the back of nimbus is a shallowly carved sitting Medicine Buddha, which usually goes unnoticed since people’s attention are drawn too much to the facial expression of the front Buddha.
The statue seems to have been built during the heyday of the United Silla Era.
3) Three-tiered stone pagoda at Yongjangsa Valley (Treasure No. 186)
Yongjangsa Temple dates back to the early part of the Joseon dynasty.when Grand Prince Su-Yang assumed the throne after taking it away from his little nephew, King Danjong, Kim Si-Seup, an excellent writer and one of the Saengyuksin subjects (six loyal subjects who sacrificed their careers for the sake of their lofty principles), preserved his integrity by resigning.
He later stayed here and wrote Geumosinhwa (Tales of Geumo).Maewoldangsa Temple was built in honor of Kim Si-Seup, but it later disappeared, without a trace.
Even the temple site is not noticeable, and only Tri-Story Stone Tower, Seokbuljwasang Statue, and Ma-ae Yeoraejwasang Statue remain. A tile carved with an excellent composition called Yongjangsa has been discovered.
Yongjangsaji Tri-Story Stone Tower, positioned on a cliff, providing a fine view of the mountain, basically has a pagoda tower shape typical of the unified Silla era, but its stylobates are very uniquely designed.
That is, after the upper part of the native base rock was trimmed until it was flat, it was set onto the lower stylobate, and the upper stylobates as well as the tri-story body stones and roof stones were set on top of this.
One can’t help but be impressed by the skills and wit of the Silla people, who transformed the mountain into a tower by using the whole mountain as a portion of the tower’s stylobates.
Thus, Mt.Namsan can be considered both a mountain and a tower.
Moreover, it harmonizes with the peripheral scenery, leaving a great impression on those who set their eyes on it.
Lotus-like tri-step pedestals supporting the Buddhist statues are common, but the pedestals that support Seokbuljwasang Statue were made by piling up doughnut-shaped stones. The native rocks were also used for the stylobates.
Currently, only the body of the Buddhist Statue is held up by the pedestals. The head is missing as the statue has rolled down from where it stands many times.
4) Yongjang-sa Buddhist Temple site (Treasure No. 187)
Yongjangsa Temple dates back to the early part of the Joseon dynasty. When Grand Prince Su-Yang assumed the throne after taking it away from his little nephew, King Danjong, Kim Si-Seup, an excellent writer and one of the Saengyuksin subjects (six loyal subjects who sacrificed their careers for the sake of their lofty principles), preserved his integrity by resigning.
He later stayed here and wrote Geumosinhwa (Tales of Geumo).
Maewoldangsa Temple was built in honor of Kim Si-Seup, but it later disappeared, without a trace.
Even the temple site is not noticeable, and only Tri-Story Stone Tower, Seokbuljwasang Statue, and Ma-ae Yeoraejwasang Statue remain.A tile carved with an excellent composition called Yongjangsa has been discovered.
Yongjangsaji Tri- Story Stone Tower, positioned on a cliff, providing a fine view of the mountain, basically has a pagoda tower shape typical of the unified Silla era, but its stylobates are very uniquely designed.
That is, after the upper part of the native base rock was trimmed until it was flat, it was set onto the lower stylobate, and the upper stylobates as well as the tri-story body stones and roof stones were set on top of this.
One can’t help but be impressed by the skills and wit of the Silla people, who transformed the mountain into a tower by using the whole mountain as a portion of the tower’s stylobates. Thus, Mt.Namsan can be considered both a mountain and a tower.
Moreover, it harmonizes with the peripheral scenery, leaving a great impression on those who set their eyes on it. Lotus-like tri-step pedestals supporting the Buddhist statues are common, but the pedestals that support Seokbuljwasang Statue were made by piling up doughnut-shaped stones.The native rocks were also used for the stylobates.
Currently, only the body of the Buddhist Statue is held up by the pedestals.
The head is missing as the statue has rolled down from where it stands many times.
5) Three-tiered stone pagoda of Cheollyongsa Temple site (Treasure No. 1188)
Pagodas in the Silla Era typically had two identical Gyeongju Namsalli Samcheungseoktap (twin pagodas) to be placed in parallel in front of the Taeungjon (Main Hall enshrining Shakyamuni Buddha).
However, the twin pagodas of Pulguksa Temple (Shakyamuni and Tabot'ap Pagodas) attempted a new harmony while intentionally breaking symmetrical structure. The same is true with the Gyeongju Namsalli Samcheungseoktap.
It is assumed to have been a ‘Yangpisa’ in〈Samgukyusa, an Eastern pagoda following the style of a stone-brick pagoda made from cut stones resembling bricks.
Western pagoda is a typical stone pagoda of the Silla Era which body structure consisted of three-stages on top of the double stereobate.
The stereobate of the Eastern pagoda was made by piling up eight different rectangular stones in turn. It is very unique in that there were different connections on each side, instead of the usual monotonous cross-type connection. It has one main stone and a roof stone.
6) Flagpole supports at Namgansa Temple site (Treasure No. 909)
Danggan refers to the flagpoles of flags called Dang, which were hoisted to defeat evil spirits or praise charitable deeds of the Buddha or a Bosal (a Buddhist saint) when Buddhist rites were held in a temple.
The stone pillars that support Danggan are called Danggan Poles. Namgansa refers to a temple that used to be on Mt. Seonamsan (West Namsan). Behind it is Haemokryeong Ridge. Only the foundation stones, wells, etc. remain. Slightly farther away from the Beopdang site are the 3.6m-tall Danggan Poles.
These two pillars face each other at 70cm intervals from east to west.
They were made in the 8th century, in the middle of the unified Silla era, but their top portion and side edges have been trimmed.
They are especially unique in that their inner parts were dug in a cross shape.
Holes were pierced in their top and bottom parts, which show a simple structure and stability.
7) Seated stone Buddha statue in Chimsikgok (Tangible Cultural Property No. 112)
It is Seokgayeoraejwasang with a Chokjihangmain-like shape (indicating a Buddha figure whose left hand is under its belly and whose right hand hangs all the way down to the bottom of its knee).
Although it has no head, its postures are splendid and uninhibited. This Buddhist statue, sitting on a lotus-like pedestal with its legs crossed,
is in a relatively well-preserved state.
8) Three royal tombs in Bae-ri (Historical Relic No. 219)
Large, small, thin, and thick pine trees meander as they please.
Why are the pine trees of Gyeongju the only ones in the city that are winding? According to one opinion, this could be attributed to the Silla era, when more than 170,000 houses existed.
To build such a city, a huge number of woods were probably needed, and as the people cut the large and straight pine trees for such purpose, only the small and bent ones eventually managed to survive for use by their descendants.
This place is more famous as a forest with such pine trees rather than as royal tombs.
Particularly in spring, when the azaleas blossom among the pine trees, the place is filled with springtime picnickers.
The three common-type mounds are said to belong to the 8th King Adala, the 53rd King Seongdeok, and the 54th King Gyeongmyeong, in that order. Samneunggok, one of the valleys in Mt. Namsan, starts from these three tombs (Samneung).
There are more than 10 Buddhist statues therein, the biggest number of Buddhist statues that could be found in any of the various valleys in Mt. Namsan.
Among these are a Buddhist statue leaning against a rock wall, a Buddhist statue whose outlines are shown on a rock, a sitting Buddhist statue, as if carved out of the rock, and a Buddhist statue’s headless body.
A certain Buddhist statue even looks down while standing at the edge of the mountain.
If Mt. Namsan were one large temple, Samneunggok may well be considered Cheonbuljeon (Buddhist palace).
9) Poseokjeong Pavilion site in Gyeongju (Historical Relic No. 1)
Trees along the path harmonize with the beauty of Poseokjeong.
It is most charming during spring and autumn.
The reason one might say that the history of Silla started and ended at Namsam is that the birth myth of the Silla ancestor Pakhyeokgosae at Najeong and the capture and killing of the 55th king of Silla King Gyeongae by Gyeonhwon (who was the leader of a coup d'etat) at Poseokjeong which ended the Silla kingdom, happened there.
Around Poseokjeong there used to be a small palace for when the king had an outing.
We can only see the curved stone aqueduct that was used to float the drinking cups of the nobility from one to the other. Around Poseokjeong there are many early Silla heritage sites.
At the west entrance of Namsan there is Oreung which is an early Silla king's tomb.
Najeong is only 500 meters from Poseokjeong. The first palace of Silla Changlimsa is between Najeong and Poseokjeong.
It also neighbors Yangsanjae which was the ceremonial place for the heads of the six villages before Silla was founded. Looking around the Poseokjeong area will give you an insight into the rise and fall of Silla.
an open-air museum, where the essence of Silla is vibrant and tangible.
Relics and ruins include Najeong Well, a central feature in the birth legend
of the kingdom; Poseokjeong Pavilion, the site where the Silla dynasty era
came to an end; the seated stone Buddha at Mireuk Valley; the standing
stone Buddhist Triad in Bae-ri; and the seated Buddha carved in relief on a
stone pillar near Chilburam Hermitage.
1) Relief of Buddha in Borisa Temple (Tangible Cultural Property No. 193)
It is said that in Sorabol, the capital of ancient Silla, a total of “178,936 houses were connected to each other with tiled roof and each house cooked rice with charcoal.” Moreover, “temples were scattered just like stars in the sky, and pagodas looked like flying wild geese in line.”
A thousand years ago, Gyeongju was already the capital of our country for a thousand years. Just thinking about this city is overwhelming which makes one wonder if there is such a similar city in the whole world.
When your imagination has run out of 2%, it is a place to visit to rejuvenate your imagination. As one walks along the trail by the southern hillside from Porisa (Temple), one could see a stunning view of the whole area centering on Mt. Jin and Mt. Nang.
Here stands a Borisa Maaeseokbul (Temple), a Buddha statue with a merciful smile.
It feels as though the statue has been still overlooking the city from a thousand years ago.
2) Seated stone Buddha statue at Mireuk Valley ( Treasure No. 136)
It is the largest in scale among the existing statues in Mt. Nam.
Given the location details of the 49th King Hongang’s Tomb and the 50th King Chonggang’s Tomb, it was referred to be ‘in the southeastern direction of Porisa (Temple) in〈Samgukyusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms)〉.
Hence, the temple could have been a very important one. This is evidenced by the presence of a Seated Stone Buddha Statue in the courtyard.
Thanks to the appearance of the statue – with an elegant yet merciful face, it is often the first to be introduced when introducing stone Buddha statues in Mt. Nam.
By its side is the hem of its dress pleasantly flowing with magnificent nimbus.
On the back of nimbus is a shallowly carved sitting Medicine Buddha, which usually goes unnoticed since people’s attention are drawn too much to the facial expression of the front Buddha.
The statue seems to have been built during the heyday of the United Silla Era.
3) Three-tiered stone pagoda at Yongjangsa Valley (Treasure No. 186)
He later stayed here and wrote Geumosinhwa (Tales of Geumo).Maewoldangsa Temple was built in honor of Kim Si-Seup, but it later disappeared, without a trace.
Even the temple site is not noticeable, and only Tri-Story Stone Tower, Seokbuljwasang Statue, and Ma-ae Yeoraejwasang Statue remain. A tile carved with an excellent composition called Yongjangsa has been discovered.
Yongjangsaji Tri-Story Stone Tower, positioned on a cliff, providing a fine view of the mountain, basically has a pagoda tower shape typical of the unified Silla era, but its stylobates are very uniquely designed.
That is, after the upper part of the native base rock was trimmed until it was flat, it was set onto the lower stylobate, and the upper stylobates as well as the tri-story body stones and roof stones were set on top of this.
One can’t help but be impressed by the skills and wit of the Silla people, who transformed the mountain into a tower by using the whole mountain as a portion of the tower’s stylobates.
Thus, Mt.Namsan can be considered both a mountain and a tower.
Moreover, it harmonizes with the peripheral scenery, leaving a great impression on those who set their eyes on it.
Lotus-like tri-step pedestals supporting the Buddhist statues are common, but the pedestals that support Seokbuljwasang Statue were made by piling up doughnut-shaped stones. The native rocks were also used for the stylobates.
Currently, only the body of the Buddhist Statue is held up by the pedestals. The head is missing as the statue has rolled down from where it stands many times.
4) Yongjang-sa Buddhist Temple site (Treasure No. 187)
He later stayed here and wrote Geumosinhwa (Tales of Geumo).
Maewoldangsa Temple was built in honor of Kim Si-Seup, but it later disappeared, without a trace.
Even the temple site is not noticeable, and only Tri-Story Stone Tower, Seokbuljwasang Statue, and Ma-ae Yeoraejwasang Statue remain.A tile carved with an excellent composition called Yongjangsa has been discovered.
Yongjangsaji Tri- Story Stone Tower, positioned on a cliff, providing a fine view of the mountain, basically has a pagoda tower shape typical of the unified Silla era, but its stylobates are very uniquely designed.
That is, after the upper part of the native base rock was trimmed until it was flat, it was set onto the lower stylobate, and the upper stylobates as well as the tri-story body stones and roof stones were set on top of this.
One can’t help but be impressed by the skills and wit of the Silla people, who transformed the mountain into a tower by using the whole mountain as a portion of the tower’s stylobates. Thus, Mt.Namsan can be considered both a mountain and a tower.
Moreover, it harmonizes with the peripheral scenery, leaving a great impression on those who set their eyes on it. Lotus-like tri-step pedestals supporting the Buddhist statues are common, but the pedestals that support Seokbuljwasang Statue were made by piling up doughnut-shaped stones.The native rocks were also used for the stylobates.
Currently, only the body of the Buddhist Statue is held up by the pedestals.
The head is missing as the statue has rolled down from where it stands many times.
5) Three-tiered stone pagoda of Cheollyongsa Temple site (Treasure No. 1188)
However, the twin pagodas of Pulguksa Temple (Shakyamuni and Tabot'ap Pagodas) attempted a new harmony while intentionally breaking symmetrical structure. The same is true with the Gyeongju Namsalli Samcheungseoktap.
It is assumed to have been a ‘Yangpisa’ in〈Samgukyusa, an Eastern pagoda following the style of a stone-brick pagoda made from cut stones resembling bricks.
Western pagoda is a typical stone pagoda of the Silla Era which body structure consisted of three-stages on top of the double stereobate.
The stereobate of the Eastern pagoda was made by piling up eight different rectangular stones in turn. It is very unique in that there were different connections on each side, instead of the usual monotonous cross-type connection. It has one main stone and a roof stone.
6) Flagpole supports at Namgansa Temple site (Treasure No. 909)
The stone pillars that support Danggan are called Danggan Poles. Namgansa refers to a temple that used to be on Mt. Seonamsan (West Namsan). Behind it is Haemokryeong Ridge. Only the foundation stones, wells, etc. remain. Slightly farther away from the Beopdang site are the 3.6m-tall Danggan Poles.
These two pillars face each other at 70cm intervals from east to west.
They were made in the 8th century, in the middle of the unified Silla era, but their top portion and side edges have been trimmed.
They are especially unique in that their inner parts were dug in a cross shape.
Holes were pierced in their top and bottom parts, which show a simple structure and stability.
7) Seated stone Buddha statue in Chimsikgok (Tangible Cultural Property No. 112)
It is Seokgayeoraejwasang with a Chokjihangmain-like shape (indicating a Buddha figure whose left hand is under its belly and whose right hand hangs all the way down to the bottom of its knee).
Although it has no head, its postures are splendid and uninhibited. This Buddhist statue, sitting on a lotus-like pedestal with its legs crossed,
is in a relatively well-preserved state.
8) Three royal tombs in Bae-ri (Historical Relic No. 219)
Why are the pine trees of Gyeongju the only ones in the city that are winding? According to one opinion, this could be attributed to the Silla era, when more than 170,000 houses existed.
To build such a city, a huge number of woods were probably needed, and as the people cut the large and straight pine trees for such purpose, only the small and bent ones eventually managed to survive for use by their descendants.
This place is more famous as a forest with such pine trees rather than as royal tombs.
Particularly in spring, when the azaleas blossom among the pine trees, the place is filled with springtime picnickers.
The three common-type mounds are said to belong to the 8th King Adala, the 53rd King Seongdeok, and the 54th King Gyeongmyeong, in that order. Samneunggok, one of the valleys in Mt. Namsan, starts from these three tombs (Samneung).
There are more than 10 Buddhist statues therein, the biggest number of Buddhist statues that could be found in any of the various valleys in Mt. Namsan.
Among these are a Buddhist statue leaning against a rock wall, a Buddhist statue whose outlines are shown on a rock, a sitting Buddhist statue, as if carved out of the rock, and a Buddhist statue’s headless body.
A certain Buddhist statue even looks down while standing at the edge of the mountain.
If Mt. Namsan were one large temple, Samneunggok may well be considered Cheonbuljeon (Buddhist palace).
9) Poseokjeong Pavilion site in Gyeongju (Historical Relic No. 1)
It is most charming during spring and autumn.
The reason one might say that the history of Silla started and ended at Namsam is that the birth myth of the Silla ancestor Pakhyeokgosae at Najeong and the capture and killing of the 55th king of Silla King Gyeongae by Gyeonhwon (who was the leader of a coup d'etat) at Poseokjeong which ended the Silla kingdom, happened there.
Around Poseokjeong there used to be a small palace for when the king had an outing.
We can only see the curved stone aqueduct that was used to float the drinking cups of the nobility from one to the other. Around Poseokjeong there are many early Silla heritage sites.
At the west entrance of Namsan there is Oreung which is an early Silla king's tomb.
Najeong is only 500 meters from Poseokjeong. The first palace of Silla Changlimsa is between Najeong and Poseokjeong.
It also neighbors Yangsanjae which was the ceremonial place for the heads of the six villages before Silla was founded. Looking around the Poseokjeong area will give you an insight into the rise and fall of Silla.
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