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The GyeongjuNational Research Institute of Cultural Heritage

Researcher Park Sung-Jin (054-777-8805),

Researcher Jang Kimyeong (054-777-5203)

The Gyeongju NationalResearch Institute of Cultural Heritage (the GNRICH, Director Lee Jong-Hoon),under the Cultural Heritage Administration, will disclose ‘the result of theexcavation in the west rampart and the approach road between Gyerim andWolseong,’ is one of the comprehensive academic research on Wolseong inGyeongju, on November 27^th through the YouTube channel of theGNRICH.

YouTube channel of the GNRICH: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyvYCBA2aJFa8hIdIpur82Q.

Wolseongin Gyeongju (historical site no. 6) is currently conducting excavations on areas,where are divided into moats, rampart (A district), and a group of buildingsites inside Wolseong (C district). Related research results were releasedthrough the media in March 2016, May 2017, and April 2019. In particular,Insingonghui (人身供犧_HumanSacrifice) to the west rampart came into the spotlight as the first case inKorea because there was a human sacrifice in the process of building therampart. 

*Insingonghui:A story that the embankment or building would not collapse if buried a personunder a cornerstone.

WolseongMoats has been restored by Restoration and Maintenance Project Team for Core Sitesof the Silla Capital, under the Cultural Heritage Administration, with GyeongjuCity since March 2019. In the middle of the restoration process of thestone-piled moat with flowing water, an excavation investigation was requestedon the unexcavated area.

SinceSeptember 2019, the GNRICH hasbegun excavation on a passageway leading toWolseong through Gyerim. In 1990, around of the passageway was excavated and『Wolseong MoatExcavation Report I』, as a result of the excavation, unveiled Jeoksim (the foundationremains) of a building site. From 2019, a complementary investigation on the restof the building site under the passageway has been conducted,and this buildingsite is believed to be a large building site from the Unified Silla era. Duringthis investigation, the GNRICH has identified a road feature and piled rooftiles from the Unified Silla to the Goryeo and Joseon era. The road feature identifiedat the closest point to Wolseong is estimated as a small road less than 5m.This road is a crucial data on the road network connecting the inner area ofthe royal palacethrough Gyerim, were related to the national ritual place and avast building site in Hwangnam-dong. Furthermore, it has been identified thatthe stone-piled moat no. 1 was divided into stone-piled moat no. 1-1 and no.1-2, and it is assumed that it will provide new information for the future moatrestoration and maintenance work.

On theother hand, the excavation of the west rampart of Wolseong was conducted toidentify the gate site entering the palace. However, the gate site was alreadylost. Two human bodies in their 50s were found between a base construction layerand an artificial ground layer for the rampart. After this discovery, thelimited scope of the research area of the gate site was expanded to itssurrounding to find data related to Insingonghui and the detailed sequence of therampart construction process. As a result, it was found that there was a relationbetween Insingonghui and the rampart construction. Moreover, various organicmatter including rice straws, traces of Gyohoseongto (交互盛土_paving with mixedcharcoal and soil), traces of piling with lumps of earth, and a stone alignmentin the layer of artificial ground for rampart were confirmed.

* Baseconstruction: The foundation process of filling wetlands or solidly buildingthe site before building the rampart.

* Artificial ground for rampart: The process of building up thebody part of the rampart

It waspossible to see an accurate moat by investigating the unexcavated area and itsaround. The stone-piled moat no.1 was divided into two moats with differentconstruction methods. It could be seen diachronic changes of features closed tothe Wolseong through the Unified Silla, Goryeo and Joseon periods.Furthermore,an opportunity was provided to analyze traces of variousconstruction methods and rituals practiced in the early mud fortification ofSilla through the supplementary research. In the future, it is expected toreveal the construction date of the rampart based on unearthed artifacts andanalysis of the paleoenvironment materials related to the construction methodof the west rampart.

Thisexcavation result is published online to share cultural heritage when it isdifficult to visit the excavation site directly due to Covid-19. Anyone canvisit the GNRICH YouTube channel to watch videos about unearthed features andartifacts. As experts reviewed and advised these excavation results, the onlinepresentation will talk down to the audience, and also experts are ready toexplain further details.

TheCultural Heritage Administration’s the Gyeongju National Research Institute ofCultural Heritage will continue to conduct research and investigation on the royalpalace of Silla and identify the space, function, culture and scenery of theSilla capital.

Photographs

2020년 월성 발굴조사 구간과 서성벽 전경

Sceneryof the excavation section on Wolseong and the west rampart

통일신라~고려·조선시대 도로 유구 전경

A roadfeature scene from the Unified Silla era to the Goryeo and Joseon era

통일신라 시대 적심건물지 전경과 토층 세부

Detailsof layers and a scene of Jeoksim building site from the Unified Silla era

월성 서성벽 인골 출토 지점

Placewhere found human bones in the west rampart, Wolseong

흙덩어리를 재료로 쓴 토낭 공법

Soilbagmethods using lumps of soil

체성부 내부에 존재한 석렬

Stonealignment in the artificial ground