Exhibition Hall of Chungju Goguryeo Monument

In Jungangtap-myeon, Chungju, the Exhibition Hall of Chungju Goguryeo Monument shelters the only Goguryeo stele in South Korea, the Chungju Goguryeo Stele, a National Treasure. It is a single block of stone just over 2 m tall, yet it is direct evidence that in the 5th century the Goguryeo kingdom had pushed south to the Namhangang River and held Silla under its sway. Entry is free and a visit takes about half an hour, so it combines well with the nearby Jungangtap Historic Park.

From village stone to National Treasure

For centuries the stone stood at the entrance to Ipseok village in Yongjeon-ri. To villagers it was just an old standing stone, its surface badly worn. In April 1979 a survey team from the Dankook University Museum identified it as a Goguryeo monument, and in 1981 it was designated a National Treasure. A protective pavilion was built that August, and when the exhibition hall opened in July 2012 the stele was moved indoors. It was first known as the Jungwon Goguryeo Stele and received its present name in December 2010.

What the stone tells us

• Size and material: granite, 2.03 m high, 55 cm wide and 33 cm thick. A natural boulder was used almost unshaped.
• Text: around 528 characters in clerical script, but many are too worn to read.
• Legible words: terms such as "Goryeo Taewang" (Great King of Goguryeo), "Silla maegeum" (a title for the Silla king) and "Crown Prince Gong" can be made out. The phrase "Silla-tonae dangju" is read as meaning that Goguryeo troops were stationed inside Silla territory.
• Date: most scholars place it in the late 5th century under King Jangsu, who extended Goguryeo into the Namhangang basin. Opinions range from King Gwanggaeto's reign in the early 5th century to the 6th century, and a 2019 study argued that one passage reads "seventh year of Yeongnak" (397).

Inside the hall

The stele stands under spotlights in the centre of the hall, and you can walk all the way round it. The surrounding galleries cover Goguryeo history, daily life and legends, introduce landmark Goguryeo sites such as Anak Tomb No. 3 and the Gwanggaeto Stele, and explain how the Chungju stele was found. Chungju controlled both the river route and the mountain passes, and Goguryeo appears to have ruled it for more than 70 years.

Why Chungju?

Chungju is where the Namhangang river route met the passes across central Korea. Goguryeo called it Gugwonseong and used it as a base for pushing south; after Silla took the area in the 6th century it became a secondary capital, Gugwon-sogyeong and later Jungwon-gyeong. That history is why Chungju proposed the name "Gugwon Goguryeo Stele" in 2006 with a World Heritage nomination in mind. The single stone captures the era when the Three Kingdoms fought over the Han River basin.

Tripto tips

• Opening hours: 09:00–18:00. Closed on Mondays, 1 January and the days of Seollal and Chuseok.
• Admission: free. Guided explanations are available in Korean.
• Time needed: 30 minutes to 1 hour.
• Combine with: about 2 km south-east, Jungangtap Historic Park has the Unified Silla seven-storey pagoda of Tappyeong-ri on the bank of the Namhangang. This land changed hands between Goguryeo and Silla, so the two sites tell one story.
• Getting there: the address is 2319 Gamno-ro, Jungangtap-myeon, Chungju, about 20 minutes' drive north-west of central Chungju.
• Viewing tip: the characters are shallow, so the strokes show up better from an angle where the light rakes across the surface than from straight in front.