There is no clear record about the foundation of Pagyesa Temple in Daegu, but it is generally believed to have been established in 804 (5th year of the reign of King Aejang of Silla) by Royal Preceptor Simji. Located at the foot of Palgongsan Mountain, the temple is notable for two buildings in particular, Wontongjeon Hall and Jindongnu Pavilion, which form the north-south axis with other buildings arranged symmetrically on both sides of the axis.
A three-kan* by three-kan structure containing a single wooden-floored space, Wontongjeon Hall was renovated in 1606 according to the prayer written on its main beam. The building features an old-style foundation combined with multiple clusters of decorative brackets arranged along the eaves of a simple gable roof, displaying the characteristic style of Korean temple buildings built in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. The hall also contains a collection of historical remains revealing that it was once a royal guardian temple.
(*kan: a unit of measurement referring to the distance between two columns)