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Ulsan petroglyphs surge in popularity after UNESCO listing

Published: 21 Oct. 2025, 18:10

The Bangudae Petroglyphs in Ulsan reemerge on Aug. 26 after being submerged for more than a month. [YONHAP]

The prehistoric petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream in Ulsan have drawn a surge of visitors following their inscription as a Unesco World Heritage site, the city said Tuesday.

From July through September, 32,204 people visited the Ulsan Petroglyph Museum, up 1.8 times from the 17,719 recorded during the same period last year. The museum’s total attendance this year has reached 69,542, with nearly half coming after the July World Heritage designation.

The listing covers two National Treasures — the Bangudae Petroglyphs and the Cheonjeon-ri Petroglyphs — both key prehistoric rock carvings that document early human activity and hold major anthropological significance.

Foreign visitor numbers have risen steadily: 108 in July, 132 in August and 124 in September.
The museum stands at the entrance to the Bangudae site, and visitors complete their tour at the museum before walking along an adjacent trail to view the actual petroglyphs.

Since there is no separate visitor-counting system for the rocks themselves, museum figures provide an estimate of total site visitation.

Ulsan city officials attribute the increase in visitors to the timing of the World Heritage inscription, the fact the carvings reemerged after being hidden by monsoon-season flooding and to the seasonal uptick in outings.

The Bangudae Petroglyphs in Ulsan reemerge on Aug. 26 after being submerged for more than a month. [YONHAP]

To match growing interest, the city has expedited improvements in transportation and tourism convenience.

From this month, a free shuttle bus operates eight times a day linking the museum, Bangudae and Cheonjeon-ri. The city tour bus route has also been reorganized around the heritage site.

“We expect more foreign tourists to visit with the upcoming APEC meeting taking place this month in nearby Gyeongju,” an Ulsan city official said. “It will be an opportunity for Ulsan’s cultural heritage to gain global attention.”
In celebration of the listing, a range of content programs is underway.

The Ulsan Petroglyph Museum is hosting a special exhibition on the inscription process until February next year, and the Ulsan Art Museum is holding an exhibition reinterpreting the petroglyphs in a contemporary context until January next year.

The film production company Cine Ulsan began producing the drama “Bangudae Sapiens” with support from Ulsan Metropolitan City, the Ulsan Information Industry Promotion Agency and the Korea Creative Content Agency.

In partnership with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the city is investing 17.5 billion won ($12.2 million) through 2030 to build a 7.2-mile historical-cultural trail linking the petroglyph sites.

The route will comprise three sections: the 1.6-mile Cheonjeon-ri Petroglyph Trail, the 1.9-mile Bangudae Petroglyph Trail and the 3.5-mile Bangu Old Road.

The design aims to enable closer visitor access to the heritage area.

Public art projects across downtown Ulsan also feature international artists, including Shepard Fairey, known for the Barack Obama campaign poster; Portuguese sculptor Vhils, often called Portugal’s Rodin and French muralist JonOne, transforming the city into a new cultural space.

“Interest in the Petroglyphs along the Bangucheon Stream has increased domestically and internationally since the World Heritage inscription,” Ulsan Mayor Kim  Doo‑gyeom said. “We will pursue a balance between preservation and use, and develop the site into a global tourism destination.”

This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY KIM YOUN-HO [[email protected]]