Hapcheon-gun and National Gaya Cultural Heritage Research Institute Sign Business Agreement

Contract Signing for Excavation Survey of Seongsan-ri Site in Ssangchaek-myeon, Hapcheon

Hapcheon County in Gyeongnam Province and the National Gaya Cultural Heritage Research Institute held a ceremony at the county office on the 15th to sign a business agreement for the excavation and restoration of the ‘Hapcheon Ssangchaek-myeon Seongsan-ri site’.

The business agreement held on the 12th was part of the National Gaya Cultural Heritage Research Institute’s Gaya cultural zone site survey research project titled ‘Research on Gaya Tombs and Artifacts.’ Under the theme ‘Origins and Development of Gaya,’ the institute conducted a demand survey for site selection in local governments in the Gyeongnam area since last year. Through on-site investigations, the Hapcheon Ssangchaek-myeon Seongsan-ri site (around the Hapcheon Okcheon Tomb Cluster) was finally selected.

Signing ceremony for the business agreement on the excavation survey of the Seongsan-ri site in Hapcheon, Gyeongnam.

The main contents of the business agreement include ▲ mutual consultation on sharing research results and future plans for conducting excavation surveys of the Hapcheon Ssangchaek-myeon Seongsan-ri site (around the Hapcheon Okcheon Tomb Cluster) ▲ support from both institutions for various projects related to excavation surveys and restoration of the Hapcheon Ssangchaek-myeon Seongsan-ri site ▲ coordination and consultation between the two institutions on additional matters necessary for academic investigations.

The Hapcheon Ssangchaek-myeon Seongsan-ri site was already partially confirmed through an excavation survey conducted by the Korea Cultural Heritage Foundation in 2015 on site No. 332 in Seongsan-ri. This location corresponds to the lowest point of a ridge about 200 meters northeast of the Hapcheon Okcheon Tomb Cluster, which is Historic Site No. 326.

Additionally, artifacts and remains from the Bronze Age and the Samhan period, which reveal the early appearance of the Dara Kingdom forces who constructed the Okcheon Tomb Cluster, were excavated here. Along with relics from the time of the tomb cluster’s construction (Three Kingdoms period), these findings are evaluated as sites that help understand the social structure of the Dara Kingdom political group, a small Gaya state.

The Hapcheon Okcheon Tomb Cluster is a representative Gaya heritage site of Hapcheon County. Together with six other regional tomb clusters?Daeseong-dong in Gimhae, Malsan in Haman, Gyodong and Songhyeon-dong in Changnyeong, Songhak-dong in Goseong, Yugok-ri and Durak-ri in Namwon, Jeonbuk, and Jisandong in Goryeong, Gyeongbuk?it is working towards inscription as a World Cultural Heritage site for Gaya tomb clusters.

County Governor Kim Yoon-cheol said, “Through this agreement, Hapcheon County and the National Gaya Cultural Heritage Research Institute will closely cooperate to identify the characteristics of the Hapcheon Ssangchaek-myeon Seongsan-ri site and strive for its preservation and management. I hope that academic research on the Gaya cultural zone will expand so that many people can share the research results and properly recognize the value of our excellent cultural heritage, and we will provide unwavering support for this.”

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