Daereungwon Tomb Complex, Gyeongju

Beautiful park dotted with large and small burial mounds from the Silla period 1500 years ago. Lovely to walk around as the tree foliage begins its autumnal journey from green to golden brown.

One of the must-visit sites when in Gyeongju. There are lots of tomb mounds in this area and you can go inside 천마종 which has artifacts and a recreation of the tomb. There is not that much info or exhibitions at the site, so I would suggest researching or going to the museum beforehand and it will give you more background to the site. I went to the museum first and then got a bus to the site later which worked well.

You must visit this historical place!! Within Daereungwon Tomb Complex is Cheonmachong Tomb (Ancient Tomb No. 155), which was excavated in 1973. Cheonmachong Tomb consists of a wooden coffin placed inside an underground chamber mounded with boulders and earth, characterized as a typical upper class tomb of the Silla period. The mound has a height of 12.7 m with a diameter of 50 m, and consists of a layer of rocks collected from streams. Below the rock layer is a wooden chamber that is 6.5 m long and 2.1 m wide, reaching 2.1 m in height, with the wooden coffin at its center. A total of 11,526 artifacts were discovered within the tomb, including Cheonmado, an artwork considered highly valuable as it is Korea's first artwork to be excavated from an ancient tomb.

Fairly large park, and quite beautiful. Lots of burial mounds. Very cheap to go into the park and definitely cool to behold the size of some of the tombs with your own eyes!

Fascinating tomb across some beautifully maintained grounds.