Pohang City Takes 'Proactive Administration' to Resolve Complaints Related to Buried Cultural Heritage

Purchase and Landscape Maintenance of Goryeo-era Earthen Fortress Ruins Adjacent to Wondong District Completed

Resolution of Construction Activity Restrictions, Focus on Cultural Heritage Maintenance and Utilization

Pohang City has completed a project to purchase land and improve the landscape of a buried cultural heritage site known as an earthen fortress from the Goryeo Dynasty.

Pohang City has completed a project to purchase land and improve the landscape of the buried cultural heritage site known as an earthen fortress from the Goryeo Dynasty. (Appearance before maintenance, January 2023)

The project site is located in the area of Ocheon-eup, Nam-gu, adjacent to the recently developed Wondong 1 District, and is known as ‘Gohyeonseong,’ an earthen fortress built during the Goryeo Dynasty.

This land was originally intended for the construction of neighborhood living facilities, but during the building permit application stage, it was confirmed to be an area containing buried cultural heritage, leading to an excavation survey conducted from October 2020 to January 2021.

The excavation results confirmed that the site is part of ‘Gohyeonseong,’ an earthen fortress from the Goryeo Dynasty, and it was recognized as a very important site where the fortress construction methods and location from the Goryeo period can be identified. The Cultural Heritage Administration took ‘on-site preservation’ measures according to the laws related to buried cultural heritage, which made construction activities impossible.

Accordingly, Pohang City requested the Cultural Heritage Administration and Gyeongbuk Province to purchase the land, securing a budget of 960 million KRW including national and provincial funds, and completed the land purchase in 2022. Subsequently, additional funds were secured for landscape maintenance, and by June of this year, grass planting across the entire site was completed.

After maintenance (current).

Pohang City also completed land purchase and landscape maintenance work in 2022 for three parcels of land at the ‘Chilpojinseong (Chilpo Naval Command Fortress)’ site located in Chilpo-ri, Heunghae-eup, Buk-gu.

Similar to ‘Gohyeonseong,’ the ‘Chilpojinseong’ site is a case where land on which individual construction activities are impossible due to buried cultural heritage was promptly purchased and maintained. Pohang City plans to actively resolve difficulties faced by civil complaints caused by buried cultural heritage through proactive administration.

‘Gohyeonseong’ is presumed to have been built in Yeongil-hyeon based on records stating that fortresses were constructed in Cheongha, Heunghae, Yeongil, and Janggi in the 2nd year of King Hyeonjong of Goryeo (1011). Geographical literature from the Joseon Dynasty, such as the ‘Sinjeung Dongguk Yeoji Seungnam,’ also records the same place name, and there are sufficient academic materials, including records stating the circumference was 1,000 cheok (尺).

During the development of the nearby Wondong 1 District, discussions were held regarding the preservation of this site, and as a result, the need for preservation was raised, leading to its exclusion from the project scope, fully recognizing its value as a cultural heritage.

A Pohang City official stated, “We will not limit ourselves to preservation but will actively seek maintenance and utilization plans to share the value of various cultural heritages located within the city, thereby enhancing the value of local cultural assets.”

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