Jeongeup-si Holds 'Maple Tree Natural Monument Designation Commemoration Ceremony'

[Jeongeup=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Jaegil] Jeongeup City, Jeonbuk Province (Mayor Yoo Jin-seop) announced on the 9th that it held a commemorative event for the designation of the Geumseon Valley maple tree as a Natural Monument (No. 563) at Naejangsan National Park.

The city held the commemorative event to promote the value of the maple tree, which has become a nationally designated natural heritage, and pledged to protect it well. The event was broadcast live online on YouTube so that many citizens could watch it.

About 100 people attended the event, including Mayor Yoo Jin-seop, Chairman Jo Sang-jung of Jeongeup City Council, Director Joo Jae-woo of the National Park Management Office, officials from the Cultural Heritage Administration and Naejangsa Temple, and local residents.

The commemorative event, held under the theme "Maple Tree Stories with Legends," began with a congratulatory performance by the city’s traditional Korean music orchestra, followed by a lecture on natural heritage by Director Ko Gyu-hong of the Natural Heritage Preservation Association, a progress report, and the presentation of the designation certificate.

The estimated age of the Naejangsan maple tree is about 290 years, with a height of 16.87 meters, a basal diameter (circumference at the base) of 1.13 meters, and a breast height diameter (circumference at chest height) of 0.94 meters.

Recorded as one of the Eight Scenic Views of Joseon in the Shinjeung Dongguk Yeoji Seungram, it is the representative species forming the maple scenery of Naejangsan and is the first maple tree in the country to be designated as a natural monument.

Despite growing in a unique environment with steep slopes and cracks in sedimentary layers and underlying bedrock, its growth condition is good.

It has also been evaluated as having great value in terms of natural scenery and academic aspects, forming a magnificent shape in harmony with the surrounding trees.

Mayor Yoo Jin-seop said, “I am very pleased that the symbolic tree representing Naejangsan, the nation’s top maple viewing spot, has been designated as a natural monument. We will systematically preserve and manage the maple tree, enhance its value as a tourist resource, explore educational uses, and protect this precious natural heritage.”

Meanwhile, there is a legend about the Naejangsan maple: “A mountain spirit, moved by a son’s filial piety searching for his lost mother in Naejangsan, turned the most numerous trees in Naejangsan red.”

Jeongeup=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Jaegil gjg7070@asiae.co.kr

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