Where Digging for Drains Can Lead To A King's Tomb, Gongju Part 4

First stop on the city bus day tour of Gongju’s past - the Songsan-ri Tombs. While digging for some drains some years back, construction workers found by chance King Muryeong’s tomb. This amazing find led to the unearthing of other tumuli: smooth-shaped baby hillocks where the royalty of the ancient kingdom of Baekje are buried. When I first saw tumuli in Gyeongju, my irreverant thought was how it would feel to toboggan down the short snowy slopes in winter.

Thanks to my tour guide and the explanatory book, I learn more about tumulis in one hour than I ever did before. Slowly I begin to appreciate the contrasting styles of different tombs. Some entrances are narrow while others are more straight-forward.

Some bricks and tiles are arranged following some cosmological beliefs ( 10- 8- 6- 4-2-1 layers in one tomb, for example). The types of building materials reflect how rich and culturally advanced the period was.

Next, the admission charge to the Gongju National Museum is generously priced at an unbelievable 400 won ( even half a cup of coffee from a vending machine would set you back 500 won)! Here , the museum houses the real deals – the copies of the gold crown ornaments seen earlier at the Songsan-ri Tombs are based on the originals which are displayed proudly here under glass and maximum security.

Photo: Gold ornament for royal head

Click here for the 2010 Great Baekje World Festival 

sources:
https://www.gongju.go.kr/html/en/culture/culture_01_02.html
http://www.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=268122
http://english.visitkorea.or.kr/enu/SI/SI_EN_3_1_1_1.jsp?cid=264322