Unesco recognizes 12 Goryeo sites in Kaesong

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Unesco recognizes 12 Goryeo sites in Kaesong

Historic sites in the North Korean city of Kaesong have been added to the Unesco World Heritage List - the second listing for the North and the 12th on the Korean Peninsula.

The UN organization said on its Web site yesterday that sites in Ukraine, Iran and North Korea were added Sunday morning during the World Heritage Committee’s 37th session ongoing in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The meeting will close on Thursday.

Kaesong, located just north of the inter-Korean border, was the capital of the Goryeo Kingdom, which dominated the Korean Peninsula between 918 and 1392.

A group of 12 separate sites in the city, which testify to the history and culture of the kingdom, has been listed, according to Unesco.

They include the tomb of King Gongmin, the Manwoldae palace site, an astronomy and meteorological observatory, schools, defensive walls, and commemorative steles.

The group of sites “testifies to the transition from Buddhism to neo-Confucianism in East Asia. .?.?. The integration of Buddhist, Confucian, Taoist and geomantic concepts is manifest in the planning of the site and the architecture of its monuments,” Unesco said.

enational@joongang.co.kr

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