Korea to designate two medieval pagodas as national treasures

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Korea to designate two medieval pagodas as national treasures

Published: 30 Oct. 2025, 17:48 Updated: 30 Oct. 2025, 18:40

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

The Korea Heritage Service announced on Oct. 30 that the Five-story Stone Pagoda at Bowonsa Temple Site, Seosan, left, and the Five-story Stone Pagoda at Gaesimsa Temple Site, Yecheon, will be elevated to National Treasure status, about 62 years after both were designated as Treasures in 1963. [KOREA HERITAGE SERVICE]

Two stone pagodas long recognized as masterpieces of early Goryeo architecture — the Five-story Stone Pagoda at Bowonsa Temple Site, Seosan and the Five-story Stone Pagoda at Gaesimsa Temple Site, Yecheon — are set to be elevated from Treasures to National Treasures, the Korea Heritage Service (KHS) announced Thursday.

Both pagodas were designated as Treasures in 1963. Sixty-two years later, their historical and artistic value has been formally reaffirmed.

Five-story Stone Pagoda at Bowonsa Temple Site, Seosan, is noted for its grandeur and balanced form. The lower base features realistic carvings of lions symbolizing the spread and protection of the Buddha’s teachings, while the upper base depicts the Eight Guardian Deities in delicate relief. [KOREA HERTIAGE SERVICE]

The Seosan pagoda, built in the mid-10th century, stands in front of the main hall site on the western grounds of the former Bowon Temple, believed to have been founded in the late Unified Silla (668-935) or early Goryeo period (918-1392). An inscription on the Stele of State Preceptor Beopin at Bowonsa Temple Site records that Goryeo monk Tanmun (900–974) erected a Buddha statue and pagoda for King Gwangjong, providing a clear dating reference for the structure.

The pagoda’s two-tier base supports five body sections, each defined by finely carved architectural details. The lower base features lion statues symbolizing guardians of Buddhist law, while the upper base bears reliefs of the Eight Guardian Deities. The roof stones are thin and broad — a stylistic departure from Unified Silla prototypes, showing Goryeo’s evolving stone-carving techniques.

According to the KHS, the pagoda’s “clearly dated construction and refined workmanship offer valuable insight into royal patronage of Buddhism during early Goryeo, bridging artistic traditions from Unified Silla into a new stylistic era.”

Built in 1011 during King Hyeonjong’s reign, the Yecheon pagoda provides another chronological anchor for Goryeo-era pagoda studies. Its 190-character inscription details the construction process, donors and the religious climate of the time — an unusually comprehensive record for a stone monument.

The Five-story Stone Pagoda at Gaesimsa Temple Site, Yecheon, built in 1011 during the Goryeo period, bears a 190-character inscription detailing its construction period, process, and the social context of the time. The intricate carvings on its base and body add to its artistic value. [KOREA HERITAGE SERVICE]

The pagoda’s double-tiered base features twelve zodiac guardians carved within arched niches, while the upper base holds paired reliefs of the Eight Guardian Deities. The first story of the main structure displays fierce Vajra warriors, creating a vertical iconographic sequence — from the earthly to the divine — unique in Korean Buddhist art.

The KHS praised the pagoda’s combination of epigraphic and sculptural detail, noting that it “vividly reflects Buddhist cosmology and offers a rare example of narrative integration in stone architecture.”

Archaeological surveys revealed that both temple sites remained active until the late Joseon period — Gaesimsa into the late 16th century and Bowonsa until the 17th or 18th century.

The KHS will collect public opinions over a 30-day notice period before finalizing the National Treasure designations through the Cultural Heritage Committee.

In addition, the agency designated four new Treasures — including the Five Hundred Arhats of Goryeo, paintings depicting the wish for divine protection during national crises — and named Geoje Sujeong Fortress, a Joseon-era mountain fortification built for coastal defense, as a Historic Site.

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 KANG HYE-RAN [[email protected]]