Gyeonggi-do Promotes Registration of Joseon Royal Birth Chamber (Taesil) as UNESCO World Heritage Site

Jungjong Taesil in Gapyeong

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] Gyeonggi Province is joining hands with Gyeongsangbuk-do and Chungcheongnam-do, where research and protection activities on the Joseon royal Tae-sil (胎室) are active, to jointly promote the inscription of domestic Tae-sil as a UNESCO World Heritage.

On the 26th, Gyeonggi Province announced that it held the first meeting at the Gyeonggi Cultural Foundation with the participation of cultural heritage research institutes from Gyeonggi, Gyeongbuk, and Chungnam (Gyeonggi Cultural Heritage Research Institute, Gyeongbuk Cultural Heritage Research Institute, Chungnam History and Culture Research Institute) to discover and spread the World Heritage value of the Joseon royal Tae-sil.

Tae-sil is a space where the royal family selects a good site after childbirth and enshrines the placenta and umbilical cord. Although many disappeared during the Japanese colonial period and industrialization, Gyeonggi Province confirmed the existence of 65 sites by the end of last year.

This meeting was arranged after Gyeonggi Province, which has been conducting surveys and protection of Tae-sil within the province since 2019, proposed a cooperative project to Gyeongsangbuk-do and Chungcheongnam-do, where Tae-sil research and protection activities are active.

The first presenter, Kim Jong-heon, senior researcher at the Gyeonggi Cultural Heritage Research Institute, presented the results of the 2020 survey on Tae-sil and Tae-bong in the province and a unique case where three Tae-ham were constructed through the 2021 excavation at Wondang-ri, Gwangju.

Lee Dong-cheol, team leader at the Gyeongbuk Cultural Heritage Research Institute, explained the survey results, designation status, and distribution of Tae-sil in Gyeongbuk since 2016.

Kim Hoe-jung, chief researcher at the Chungnam History and Culture Research Institute, shared the status and research results of Tae-sil cultural heritage in Chungcheongnam-do since 2015, as well as the characteristics and current status of Tae-sil located in each province.

The three institutions agreed to promote various activities in the future, including ▲signing a memorandum of understanding (MOU) involving the three metropolitan local governments and research institutes ▲holding regular meetings ▲hosting international academic symposiums.

A provincial official emphasized, "Gyeonggi Province has the largest number of Joseon royal tombs, a World Heritage, with 31 out of 40 tombs," adding, "This meeting is meaningful as it is the first time the three metropolitan local governments, which have made efforts in research and protection of Tae-sil, have come together. We will work together so that Tae-sil culture can be newly highlighted as a World Heritage and widely recognized through this meeting."

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