The Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage (the GNRICH, Director Kim Seong-bae) and the Korean Archaeological Society (President Park Sun-bal) will hold ‘the 45th National Archaeological Conference’ together for two days on 5th (Fri) and 6th (Sat) of November at the Gyeongju Hwabaek Convention Centre (HICO) as a part of a project for 60th anniversary of the cultural property administration. 

This conference is designed to examine the present and future of Korean archaeology in connection with academics to celebrate ‘the 60th anniversary of the cultural property administration’. This conference is held under the theme of ‘Korean Archaeology, beyond the Korean Peninsula’. It will try to examine various case studies of societies in the past related to the Korean Peninsula that went beyond the main perspectives of archaeological research, which has been limited to the Korean Peninsula so far. Furthermore, this conference will comprehensively review recent achievements of domestic and foreign research beyond the boundaries of ‘Korean archaeology’ and suggest a new direction for interpreting prehistoric and ancient societies. 

On the first day (Fri, November 5th), the conference is held at the convention hall on the third floor of the HICO. The conference will start with the opening speech of Park Sun-bal, the president of the Korean Archaeological Society at 10 am, followed by special lectures including ‘Korean archaeological investigation and changes of burial culture system’ (Lee Jong-hoon and Choi Moon-Jeong, the Cultural Heritage Administration) in the morning. In the afternoon, there will be three thematic sections. The first section is about ‘Silk Road Archaeology’, consisting of four presentations, including ‘Prehistoric Human Figures in Eurasia Steppe’ (Kim Jae-yoon) and a comprehensive discussion (moderator Gwon Oh-young). The second section is about ‘Beyond Extension of Archaeology, Seeking New Paradigm’ which is comprised of four presentations, including ‘A Brief Study of Academic Extension: Focusing on Korean Archaeology’ (Gwak Seung-gi) and a talk about ‘Purpose, Theory, Methodology and Education of Korean Archaeology’. The third section will be conducted under the theme of ‘Peninsula within Northeast Asia’. This section also consists of four presentations, including ‘Transition of Palace (城) and Rampart (郭) in the Ancient Capital City of China’ (Kim Bong-geun) and a comprehensive discussion. 

On the Second day (Sat, November 6th), five subjects and free discussions will be held in the conference hall and exhibition hall on the first floor of the HICO at the same time. The first subject of free discussion is organized by the convergence research team of the department of archaeology and art history at Seoul National University and the department of archaeology and history at the National Museum of Korea. This consists of nine presentations under ‘production and distribution of archaeological data in Korean prehistory and history era’. The second subject comprises six presentations under the theme of ‘historical investigation of the museum of Japanese government - General of Korea’ and individual discussion.

The third subject consists of 6 presentations about the ‘application and feasibility of network analysis of archaeological data’ and a comprehensive discussion, which professor Kim Jong-il designs at Seoul National University. The fourth subject is held by the archaeological laboratory at the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage. This section is divided into two parts under the theme of ‘Archaeology Geographic Information System (GIS), Beyond Information to Knowledge: Review of Models Utilized Archaeology GIS’. This consists of seven presentations about spatial information of archaeological sites and future GIS models (part 1) and reviewing research methodologies of excavation sites using GIS and their question-and-answer. Finally, the fifth subject consists of 9 presentations to show investigation results from important excavation sites in Korea in 2020 including ‘The Hwaseong Suyoungri Site - The Largest Village Settlement in the Southern Gyeonggi Province (Gyeore Research Institute of Cultural Heritage)’. 

The GNRICH under the Cultural Heritage Administration expects this National Archaeological Conference to serve as an opportunity to draw various opinions and alternatives while contemplating the future of archaeological research together. In the future, the GNRICH will continue to expand cooperation with related academia and various fields. Through this, the GNRICH will work together to develop and build the research foundation continuously.