Uljin Bongpyeong-ri Silla Stele

In 1988, while soil was being dug out of a rice paddy in Bongpyeong-ri, Jukbyeon-myeon, Uljin, a long stone covered with characters came to light. A local villager recognised it and reported it: this is the Uljin Bongpyeong-ri Silla Stele, a National Treasure thought to have been erected in 524 under King Beopheung of Silla. It is a rare official record, some 1,500 years old, of resistance and punishment in a village newly absorbed as Silla pushed up the east coast.

A record of punishment in stone

At the time Silla had set up Siljik Province on the east coast and annexed the Uljin area. When the inhabitants rose up against it, Silla is understood to have convened a council of the six divisions (bu), sent officials to punish those responsible, and raised this stele to deter any further revolt. The village named in the text, Geobeolmora, is thought to be today's Bongpyeong, so the stele resurfaced in the very place where the events it records took place 1,500 years ago. The text calls King Beopheung "Maegeum-wang" and shows nobles from several divisions issuing orders jointly – a glimpse of early Silla, when royal power was not yet absolute. It also mentions specific laws and beating as a punishment, supporting the Samguk Sagi record that Beopheung promulgated a legal code.

A National Treasure left by a rice field

The stone was dug up during work to add fresh soil to a paddy and lay ignored for two or three months before a villager, suspecting it was unusual, reported it. Its identity was quickly established and it was designated a National Treasure in November 1988, the year it was found. Burial preserved its shape well, but some characters are worn and scholars still read parts of the text differently. It is written in a distinctive Silla-style Classical Chinese, so for some passages only the general sense is clear.

What to look for on the stone

The inscription is carved on one face of an unworked granite boulder 204 cm long. The stone is roughly trapezoidal, and the text runs to nearly 400 characters in ten lines. The script is regular style with traces of clerical script, and although much smaller, the rough-hewn form is often compared with the Gwanggaeto Stele of Goguryeo. Long burial has worn some characters, but up close the lines of carved text are clearly visible.

Bongpyeong Silla Stele Exhibition Hall

The stele is now kept inside an exhibition hall that opened near the find spot in 2011. Gallery 1 shows the real stele and a rubbing; Gallery 2 displays models of ten major steles – six from Silla, one from Goguryeo and three from Baekje – for comparison. Outside, a stele park lines up 25 replicas of National Treasure and Treasure-class steles from the Three Kingdoms to Joseon, plus 45 local commemorative steles – a small museum of Korean steles in its own right.

Tripto tips

• Visiting: check opening hours, closing days and any admission fee with Uljin County's tourism information before you go.
• Time needed: 40 minutes to 1 hour for the hall and the outdoor stele park.
• Getting there: the address is 15 Bonghwa-gil, Jukbyeon-myeon, Uljin. It is close to Jukbyeon Port, so it pairs well with a harbour visit; public transport is sparse, so a car is easier.
• Combine with: Seongnyugul Cave in Uljin is a little over 20 minutes' drive to the south.