Donggureung Royal Tombs

Donggureung in Guri, Gyeonggi Province, is the largest group of royal tombs of the Joseon dynasty. The name means "nine tombs east of the capital": nine tombs, including Geonwolleung of King Taejo, the founder of Joseon, hold 17 kings and queens. It became a Historic Site in 1970 and was inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List in 2009 as part of the Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty. Forest paths link the tombs, so you can see on foot how Joseon royal tombs changed over more than 400 years.

History: a cluster that began with Taejo

When Taejo died in 1408, officials searched the area around Hanyang for an auspicious site, and Ha Ryun chose this spot at Geomamsan in today's Guri. As more tombs were added the cluster was called "the five eastern tombs", then "the seven eastern tombs", until the name Donggureung became fixed after Sureung was moved here in 1855. That royal tombs kept being built here for over four centuries shows how highly the site was regarded. Each tomb once had its own preparation hall for the rites; today a single hall near the southern entrance serves the whole cluster. The site where Empress Myeongseong was first buried is also inside Donggureung.

What to see

• Geonwolleung (King Taejo): it follows the tomb of King Gongmin of Goryeo but adds a low wall around the mound, setting the standard for Joseon royal tombs. Its most striking feature is that, following Taejo's wishes, the mound is covered with silver grass instead of turf. A ceremony to cut the grass is held every year in early April. The T-shaped shrine for ancestral rites was first built in 1408 and extensively repaired in 1764.
• Mongneung (King Seonjo and two queens): one shrine serves mounds on separate hills. Seonjo's tomb was first built elsewhere and moved here in 1630 after complaints that it was waterlogged. Its shrine is the only one among the Joseon royal tombs with brackets between the columns (dapo style).
• Sungneung (King Hyeonjong and Queen Myeongseong): its shrine of 1674 is the only surviving one at the 40 Joseon royal tombs with a hipped-and-gabled roof, and at eight bays it is larger than usual. With the state short of money, funeral buildings were cut back and the shrine took over the role of another structure.
• Wolleung (King Yeongjo and Queen Jeongsun): Yeongjo had reserved a place beside his first queen, Jeongseong, but was finally buried here with his second queen.
• Hyeolleung, Hwireung, Hyereung, Gyeongneung and Sureung: the tombs of King Munjong, Queen Jangryeol (second queen of King Injo), Queen Danui (wife of King Gyeongjong), King Heonjong and the posthumously honoured King Munjo.

Tripto tips

• Opening hours: February–May and September–October 06:00–18:00, June–August 06:00–18:30, November–January 06:30–17:30. Last entry one hour before closing.
• Closed: every Monday. If Monday is a public holiday, the site opens and closes on the next weekday instead.
• Admission: adults KRW 1,000. Free for Korean citizens aged 24 and under or 65 and over, foreign visitors aged 18 and under or 65 and over, and anyone wearing hanbok.
• Getting there: about 10 minutes on foot from exit 3 of Donggureung station on Subway Line 8.
• Route: past the ticket office and red spirit gate, a path through oak and pine woods leads to the preparation hall, where the paths to the nine tombs branch off.
• Time needed: the loop path linking the nine tombs makes a 1–2 hour forest walk. Special visits close to the Geonwolleung mound are run separately in spring and autumn.