Geumgwanchong Tomb - Prized Artifacts Discovered But Still Remain Mystery
The Geumgwanchong Tomb makes for an important relic as far as the discovery of historic sites in South Korea history.
The tomb belongs to the Silla Dynasty but it remains undiscovered to whom does the tomb belong. However certain speculation hints at the fact that the tomb belonged to some ruling king before or after the King Ji-Jeung reign in the early 6th century.
The Geumgwanchong Tomb is located in Noseo-dong, Gyeongju. The tomb belongs to a group of three tombs found in downtown Gyeongju in the Noseo-dong Tomb district.
- The excavation of the Geumgwanchong Tomb date back to September 1921. This unexpected discovery of the tomb was made by a civilian leveling the ground in preparation for construction of a house.
- Among the initial discoveries, the first important relic found is that of a golden crown, Geumgwan. The tomb owes its name to this first discovery.
- The Silla Crowns are known to be very fragile and some of them even weigh more than one kilogram.
- The crowns were known to be in use only for ceremonial and formal occasions.
- The intricate metal working of the crowns hinted at the fact that the goldsmiths during the Silla age had an advanced knowledge of working with gold.
- Some historians are of the opinion that the crowns were only meant for burial purposes.
- Other prized artifacts found included ornaments in gold like earrings, belts, saddlers, bracelets and crockery.
- These artifacts are known to belong to the three royal eras of Goguryeo, Baekje and Silla.
Geumgwanchong Tomb Back to Historic Sites
