Gyeongbuk Province Hosts 'Festival of Silla Kings'... Reexamining Silla Kings Through Storytelling

Festival scenes of the kings of Silla.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters, Trainee Reporter Hwang Du-yeol] Gyeongsangbuk-do held the ‘2021 Festival of the Silla Kings’ organized by the Festival Promotion Committee of the Silla Kings from the 19th to the 21st at the Bonghwangdae area in Gyeongju City.

This festival’s theme was ‘Re-examining the Silla Kings.’

At the festival opening ceremony, key guests including Kang Seong-jo, Deputy Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, and Joo Nak-young, Mayor of Gyeongju City, acted as ritual officers to reenact a traditional rite praying for overcoming COVID-19 and safety.

The theme performance told the story of the Peaceful Manpasikjeok and the National Defender, King Munmu, the Dragon of Protection.

Throughout the three days of the festival, various traditional cultural experience events related to Silla culture were held at different venues, including the Silla Kings Promotion Hall, the reading exam equivalent to the Silla era’s civil service examination called Doksesampum, the Golden Bell event, Hwangridan-gil event hall, the Silla Kings parade with tourists and residents, and booths featuring local specialties.

Kang Seong-jo, Deputy Governor of Gyeongbuk Province, said, “I hope many tourists participate and that this becomes a representative festival of Korea.”

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