Daereungwon

	Daereungwon
Korean spelling
Korean alphabet :	대릉원
Hanja :	大陵苑
Revised Romanization :	Daereungwon
McCune-Reischauer :	Taerŭngwŏn

Daereungwon ( kor. 대릉원 ) is a collection of 23 barrows ( burial mounds ) in the center of the South Korean city of Gyeongju . The area is part of the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Historic Sites of Gyeongju .

Overview

The area is designed as a park and is one of the main attractions of Gyeongju. The tombs are the final resting places of kings and other high-ranking figures of the Silla Empire .

In the "Tomb of the Heavenly Horse" ( Cheonmachong , 천마총, Tomb No. 155) an entrance was dug so that one can visit the inside. In it are replicas of the finds that were found in the grave next to the burial site. Including two golden crowns ( National Treasure No. 188 and 189), the most valuable individual pieces found from the graves. Cheonmaching is 13 meters high and 47 meters in diameter. It was built at the end of the fifth century. The grave got its name from a picture of a white horse on a saddle found there ( Cheonmado , National Treasure No. 207). All original finds are in the Gyeongju National Museum . The grave takes its name from the image of a horse, the Cheonmado . It is the only known painting from the time of the Silla Kingdom.

The largest burial mound is formed by the double mounds of "Hwangnam Daechong" with an area of 80 × 120 meters. The northern hill reaches a height of 23 meters, the southern 22.2 meters. A royal couple and over 30,000 relics rested in the grave, some of them made of gold. Underneath another crown made of gold and jade (National Treasure No. 191).

The tomb of King Michu (reign: 262–284), the 13th king of Silla, is also located there. When the Japanese invaded the empire during the reign of Yurye , the 14th king, legend has it that soldiers with bamboo leaves in their ears came out of the grave and defeated the invaders.