Gochang-gun Promotes Registration of 'Korean Eupseong' as UNESCO World Cultural Heritage

[Gochang=Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Jaegil] On the 11th, Jeonbuk Gochang-gun announced that it is promoting the registration of ‘Korean Eupseong’ as a serial heritage on the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage list together with Suncheon-si in Jeonnam, Seosan-si in Chungnam, and Jinju-si in Gyeongnam.

The video conference held on the 9th was attended by Gochang County Governor Yu Gi-sang, Suncheon Mayor Heo Seok, Seosan Mayor Maeng Jeong-ho, Jinju Mayor Jo Gyu-il, and Kim Gwi-bae, Director of the Science and Culture Headquarters of the UNESCO Korea Committee.

Based on its experience registering the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage ‘Gochang Dolmen Site’ and the World Natural Heritage ‘Korean Tidal Flats, Gochang Tidal Flats,’ the county plans to promote the registration of ‘Gochang Eupseong’ and ‘Mujanghyeon Government Office and Eupseong’ as world heritage sites.

In this video conference, they agreed to unite efforts for the UNESCO World Cultural Heritage registration, including integrated preservation and management plans for Korean Eupseong such as Gochang Eupseong and Mujang Eupseong (Gochang-gun), Nagan Eupseong (Suncheon-si), Haemi Eupseong (Seosan-si), and Jinju Fortress (Jinju-si), academic conferences to identify the value of Eupseong, academic surveys for preservation and utilization plans, and restoration.

They also plan to proceed with preliminary preparations such as building a fortress city brand through continuous solidarity among Eupseong and inducing additional participation from Eupseong cities nationwide, eventually forming a ‘Korean Eupseong City Council.’

The Eupseong sites preparing for this joint registration are representative Eupseong of Korea, sharing commonalities such as historical significance, relatively well-preserved forms, and being representative cultural heritage symbolizing their regions, which is expected to be advantageous for cultural content development.

A county official said, “Gochang Eupseong was constructed with participation and cooperation from 19 counties in Jeolla Province, reflecting the governance value of regions and residents. For the UNESCO World Heritage registration, we propose that each local government address this as a current issue and will continue communication and joint efforts among local governments.”

Meanwhile, the county is also promoting the registration of Gochang Mahan cultural heritage as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage by publishing the ‘Gochang Mahan Cultural Heritage Catalog,’ conducting academic surveys for the ‘Gochang Mahan World Cultural Heritage Registration,’ and the ‘Yejiri Fortress Academic Survey.’

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

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