'Ancient Mahan History and Culture Research' Mahan History and Culture Center to Open in Yeongam

Yeongam-gun, the starting point of the Yeongsan River, has been selected as the candidate site for the construction of the ‘National Mahan History and Culture Center,’ which will serve as a hub for restoring and researching the history and culture of ancient Mahan.

According to Jeonnam Province on the 20th, the National Mahan History and Culture Center, announced by the Cultural Heritage Administration (National Naju Cultural Heritage Research Institute), will act as a control tower to systematically manage, research, exhibit, and utilize excavation records, preserved sites, and non-designated cultural assets of major relics in the Mahan historical and cultural zone, based on the ‘Special Act on the Maintenance of Historical and Cultural Areas.’

Panoramic view of the Mahan Historical and Cultural Heritage Yeongam Okya-ri Burial Mounds.
[Photo by Jeonnam Province]

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With a total project cost of 40 billion KRW, basic and detailed designs will be conducted in 2024, and construction is scheduled to begin in 2025.

By attracting the National Mahan History and Culture Center, the province plans to lead the Mahan historical and cultural zone based on the foundation built over the past decade since 2012 through preliminary excavations of Mahan relics, and to establish a basis for future efforts to register it as a World Heritage site.

To date, continuous proposals have been made to establish policy systems for the Mahan historical and cultural zone, leading to the enactment of the ‘Special Act on the Maintenance of Historical and Cultural Areas’ in June 2020, and spearheading the adoption of the national agenda ‘Comprehensive Maintenance and Promotion of Eight Historical and Cultural Zones,’ which includes the promotion of the construction of the History and Culture Center.

Among the support projects for the eight historical and cultural zones, Mahan-related project expenses such as 200 million KRW for the feasibility study of the Mahan History and Culture Center and 2 billion KRW for excavation of important relics in the Mahan historical and cultural zone were reflected in the government budget for the first time nationwide. As a result of these efforts, the National Mahan History and Culture Center was successfully attracted.

In particular, Yeongam-gun is a region that proves Mahan remained an independent political entity until the mid-6th century, and it holds 77% of the nationwide Mahan relics, including apartment-style tombs, pottery jar tombs, gilt-bronze crowns, and gilt-bronze shoes, which greatly contributed to its selection.

Yeongam-gun established the first Mahan History and Culture Park in Korea in 2004 and hosts the Mahan Culture Festival. The Sijong-myeon area is a treasure trove of Mahan heritage, with over 50 large tombs from the Mahan period densely clustered.

Kim Ki-hong, Director of Tourism, Culture, and Sports at Jeonnam Province, said, “We hope the National Mahan History and Culture Center will be smoothly constructed and become a hub encompassing the Mahan historical and cultural zone from Gyeonggi Province to Jeolla Province,” adding, “We will actively cooperate with the Cultural Heritage Administration to create future value through the systematic preservation and utilization of Mahan cultural heritage.”

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