Geochang County Governor Initiates Academic Excavation Survey of Bunsanseong for Gaya History Restoration Project

Uncovering the Reality of 'Geoyeolguk' through Excavation and Restoration of Gaya Relics

Gu In-mo, Mayor of Geochang County, is listening to an explanation about the excavation survey of Bunsanseong Fortress. (Photo by Geochang County)

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] As a pledge project of Gu In-mo, the mayor of Geochang County, Gyeongnam, the restoration project of Gaya history, along with the ‘Geoyeolsanseong National Historic Site Designation,’ the county announced on the 3rd that it has begun academic excavation surveys on Geochang Bunsanseong, Mureung-ri Tomb (Ⅰ-M6), and Seokgang-ri Tomb (M19).

The purpose of this project is to identify the reality of ‘Geoyeolguk’ through the excavation and restoration of Gaya relics in the Geochang area, a strategic key point of Gaya, Silla, and Baekje, and to establish a foundation for local tourism resources.

Bunsanseong is a terraced stone fortress built around the summit of Pyeonggangsan (平岡山, elevation 235m), located at the center of the Geochang basin. It is recorded in old documents as Seongsan (城山), Seongsan Goseong (城山古城), and Goseong (古城), and along with Geoyeolsanseong on the summit of Geonheungsan, it is known as a representative mountain fortress of Geochang County.

Since last March, a detailed surface survey has been conducted by the Gyeongnam Research Institute to determine the scale and characteristics of Bunsanseong.

Through this detailed surface survey, it was confirmed that Bunsanseong is a medium-sized Silla fortress with an overall circumference of about 839m, an irregular shape close to an oval, with a maximum north-south length of about 283m and a maximum east-west length of about 197m. Going forward, academic excavation surveys of Bunsanseong will be conducted to determine its archaeological value.

Next, Mureung-ri Tomb, a representative Gaya tomb in Geochang, yielded 244 artifacts from the 2018 excavation of Tomb (Ⅱ-M5). The current excavation of Tomb (Ⅰ-M6) is being promoted as part of the 2020 Gaya Relics National Designated Cultural Heritage Promotion Project.

The Mureung-ri Tomb Cluster is located at a strategic point accessible to Silla and Baekje, and is academically important for understanding the cultural aspects of the Three Kingdoms period in the border area. For the restoration and maintenance of the tombs, an application for designation as a cultural property of Gyeongsangnam-do was submitted in October 2019.

Additionally, the excavation of Seokgang-ri Tomb (M19) is being promoted as an emergency excavation support project by the Cultural Heritage Administration in 2020, following the discovery last year that Tomb (M13) is the first ‘工’-shaped Gaya tomb. This year, an additional tomb will be excavated to apply for designation as a cultural property.

Meanwhile, the Silla Village Creation Project is a city-county creative project under the General Rural Agricultural and Fishery Development Project. It is scheduled for completion in November and aims to increase residents’ income by building village content based on the oral legend of Prince Seodong and Princess Seonhwa in the Gajiri Nopsan Chuiuryung area, a border zone between Silla and Baekje.

Also, in mid-July, an application for the 3rd Cultural City Designation Contest by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism was submitted under the project name ‘Ancient Wisdom, New Community’ for the cultural city creation plan.

Gu In-mo, mayor of Geochang County, stated, “Through cultural and historical heritage projects, we expect to enhance the cultural pride of the residents and will do our best to develop historical and tourism resources to create a refined cultural tourism city.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.