Gyeongsangbuk-do(Andong-si)

The Andong Public Folk Museum is where you can experience Confucian culture and traditional games of Korea. Andong is famous for Confucian culture and the four traditional ceremonies (the ceremonies of coming of age, marriage, funeral and ancestral worship). Here you can view the lifestyles of the past and important cultural treasures. The indoor museum is segmented into three exhibit halls. At Exhibit Hall 1, the process of going from the birth of a baby to childhood is displayed. At Exhibit Hall 2, the process of becoming an adult to the rituals of death and funeral is displayed. At Exhibit Hall 3, the daily life and traditional games are displayed in small models. Including old farming tools and cloth making process, the folk relics of this museum add up to 3,700 artifacts. There is also a visual system for videos. After you look through the indoor exhibits, head outside to the outdoor exhibits. The outdoor exhibit is a park complex, made of folk houses and cultural assets moved to this site. You will see exhibits representing the Andong lifestyle such as a stone house, a straw roofed, mud-hut and a watermill.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Gyeongju-si)

Bonghwangdae is an ancient tomb of Silla located in the tomb cluster of Nodong-dong. The tomb is an impressive 82 meters in diameter and 22 meters in x_height, making it look more like a hill than a tomb due to its humongous size. Though said to be the tomb of a king, this has not been verified since the tomb has never been excavated. The name “Bonghwang” (meaning “phoenix”) comes from the legend of Wanggeon and the geomancer. Wanggeon was waiting for the fall of the Silla Kingdom and decided to seek the help of a geomancer. The geomancer said that the kingdom of Silla was shaped like a ship and that this “ship” must sink in order for the kingdom to fall. After promising Wanggeon that he could sink the ship of Silla, the geomancer sought an audience with the king of Silla. The geomancer told the king that the land of Silla resembled the shape of the Bonghwang (phoenix) and that the bird was about to fly away, which would bring about the ruin of the kingdom. The king, who had been worrying about domestic affairs, believed the geomancer and asked him for a solution. The geomancer told the king that if he made a hill that looked like an egg at the capital city, the “bird” wouldn’t fly away, but would stay to protect her egg and the kingdom. As a result, the king made of lot of ancient tombs, one of which was the sizable Bonghwangdae Tomb. Legend has it that Silla truly was shaped like a ship, not a phoenix, and all these tombs symbolized the “overloading” of the ship, leading to the eventual ruin of the kingdom. After the fall of Silla, Wanggeon rose to power and later became the founder of the Goryeo Dynasty.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Gyeongju-si)

The Royal Tomb of Queen Seondeok (선덕여왕릉), located in Bomun-dong, is a round-shaped tomb with earthen layers, 73 meters in circumference. Aside from the fact that it was constructed using natural stones in double layers, the tomb has no other unique features. As the oldest daughter of King Jinpyeong, Queen Seondeok became the first queen of the Silla Kingdom. During the 16th year of her reign, Bunhwangsa Temple (분황사) and Cheomseongdae Observatory (첨성대) were built. She also ordered the construction of the famous nine-story pagoda of Hwangyongsa Temple, an achievement of Buddhist architecture. While many of her efforts laid the foundation for the unification of Three Kingdoms of Korea, Queen Seondeok’s reign was plagued by rebellion and strife and she died in 647 during a rebellion, 23 years before unification was realized.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Gyeongju-si)

Wooyang Art Museum, located in the Bomun Tourist Complex, is a private gallery of modern art established in 1991. The collections of major modern and contemporary artists are on display. The museum targets famous modern art collections and retrospective exhibitions of artists in the middle of their careers. Nearly 450 pieces of European and American sculptures, paintings, and photographs from the 1960s, along with leading collections of Korean modernist art from the 1970s, are displayed in Wooyang Art Museum. In particular, modern Eastern European art and decorative art collections, a rarity in Korea, are on display here. The place has also beeb showcasing modern and contemporary art from a historical perspective through a large-scale international exhibition, and plans to hold a special exhibition for renowned domestic and foreign artists in the middle of their careers who have suggested art trends ahead of their time. Furthermore, various lecture and exhibitions have been held to meet the diverse needs of local citizens, making Wooyang Art Museum a major cultural center in the community.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Gyeongju-si)

Gyeongju East Palace Garden re-creates Korea's first zoo and botanical garden in the image of a modern Donggung Palace and Woliji Pond. The garden is comprised of botanical garden, agricultural experience facility and Bird Park. In particular, the greenhouses in the botanical garden are built with the design of traditional building from the Silla period but are made entirely of glass, providing this garden with a unique atmosphere.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Gyeongju-si)

Located in the middle of the Bomun Tourist Complex in Gyeongju, Commodore Hotel has been in service for over 20 years. Its unique interiors and exteriors, influenced by Buddhism, regularly attract film makers and photographers. The hotel is also popular because of its location in Gyeongju, the ancient city full of historical treasures as the capital of the Silla Kingdom. In addition, popular promenades or hiking trails are located around Bomun Lake, just a five minute walk from the hotel.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Gyeongju-si)

Silla Culture Experience Center was established to offer various cultural programs featuring Gyeongju in the basement level between Daereungwon Tomb Complex and Cheomseongdae Observatory. Cultural programs include making chocolates in the shape of Gyeongju's cultural assets, making a golden crown, kite-making, Korean music performance, and more.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Gyeongju-si)

This is the Royal Tomb of King Muyeol (무열왕릉) the 29th of the Silla Kingdom (654-661). He allied his forces with those of the Chinese Tang Dynasty and unified the Korean peninsula. This large tomb is 114 meters in circumference and 8.7 meters in x_height. Natural stones were piled on the bottom of the tomb, and they remain buried underground. The monument stone is gone, leaving only the turtle-shaped base stone and the dragon-carved head stone. Carved in relief is the inscription “Taejongmuyeolwangneungbi” (태종무열왕릉비), which indicates the owner of this monument.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Andong-si)

On the other side of the subsidiary dam of Andong Dam, thatched houses will be sparsely seen on the hilltop. The area is the folk scene site where an outdoor museum is built. At the entrance of the outdoor museum two jangseungs (Korean traditional totem poles) are set, followed by a monument inscribed with the poem of famous Andong poet and democracy activist, Lee Yuk-sa. On the monument, his noted works “Gwangya” (Wild Plain) is carved. Near the Dam, are the Andong Folk Village, Andong Museum, Lee Yuk-sa Monument, a filming site of “Taejo Wanggeon,” and Andongho Lake.


Gyeongsangbuk-do(Gyeongju-si)

King Naemul was the 17th monarch of the Silla Kingdom (in power from 356 to 402) and became the second king of the Kim family name. King Naemul was known as the first king to initiate the king title of ‘Maripgan’ and was known for spreading cultural advancements from China to the Korean people. When the allied forces of Baekje and Japan attacked, he asked Gwanggaeto the Great of Goguryeo for help and led the people to victory, contributing to the increased strength of the Silla Kingdom. After his rule, the throne was exclusively ceded to members of the Kim family clan. The royal tomb of King Naemul is a large mound (2.2m in diameter and 5.3m in x_height) that sits on the northern hill of the Confucian school of Gyeongju. The edge of a natural stone is exposed around the bottom of the mound, pointing to the fact that the inner chamber tomb was made of stone. In the historical document Samguk Sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms), no records are found about the tomb, but the Samguk Yusa (Memorabilia of the Three Kingdoms) describes the king’s tomb as being located in the southwest of Cheomseongdae, which is consistent with the tomb’s location.