The Korea Heritage Service (KHS) announced on Thursday that two Buddhist stone pagodas dated to Korea’s Goryeo dynasty (918–1392) are to be designated as National Treasures. 

The two monuments are a five-tier pagoda built in the 10th century at Bowonsa, a Buddhist temple in Seosan, a city in the southwestern province of South Chungcheong, and a five-tier pagoda dated to 1011 CE at Gaesimsa, a long-since-disappeared temple in Yecheon County in the eastern province of North Gyeongsang.

National Treasure is an official national-level designation applied to tangible heritage objects that affirms their artistic, cultural, and historical significance. It encompasses works of art, artifacts, as well as heritage sites, buildings, and structures.

The pagoda at Bowonsa was built in the mid-10th century, stands in front of the temple’s main hall. Clear dating information is provided by an inscription on a stele for State Preceptor Beopin, the originator of Sagulsanmun, one of the nine schools of Seon (Zen) Buddhism formed in Korea between the late Silla and early Goryeo periods. The inscription indicates that monk named Tanmun (900–974 CE) erected a Buddha statue and pagoda for King Gwangjong (r. 949–975), the fourth monarch of the Goryeo dynasty. 

According to a KHS offical, the “clearly dated construction and refined workmanship [of the pagoda] offer valuable insights into royal patronage of Buddhism during the early Goryeo, bridging artistic traditions from the Unified Silla into a new stylistic era.” (Korea Joongang Daily)

The Goryeo dynasty was established in 918 CE by King Taejo Wang Geon. It united the Later Three Kingdoms (892–936 CE) in 936 CE and ruled most of the Korean Peninsula until it was displaced by the founder of the Joseon kingdom, Yi Seong-gye, in 1392. Goryeo expanded the country’s borders to present-day Wonsan in the northeast (936–943 CE), the Yalu River (993 CE), eventually spreading to cover almost all of the present-day Korean Peninsula (1374).

The Bowonsa pagoda has a double-layered base with carved lions on the lower layer, while the upper layer features relief carvings of the eight traditional guardian deities—protectors of the Buddhadharma. Each roof stones is thin and broad, representing a stylistic departure from Unified Silla prototypes and illustrating the Goryeo-era evolution of stone-carving techniques.

“This outstanding stone pagoda of the early Goryeo dynasty is rather formally carved, and gives an impression of gravity and stability,” the KHS noted. (Korea Heritage Service)

The pagoda at the site of Gaesimsa was built in 1010, during the reign of King Hyeonjong (r. 1009–1031), and bears a 190-character inscription that details the construction process, sponsors, and the religious climate of the time—considered an unusually comprehensive record for a stone monument. 

The pagoda, standing in the middle of a rice field, features a two-level base supporting the five tiers. Each side of the lower layer of the base is engraved with the 12 animals of the zodiac. The four faces of the upper layer are decorated with the eight guardian deities. The main structure displays carvings of fierce Vajra warriors in a vertical iconographic sequence, from the earthly to the divine, which the KHS noted was unique in Korean Buddhist art. 

The KHS observed that the pagoda’s combination of epigraphic and sculptural detail “vividly reflects Buddhist cosmology and offers a rare example of narrative integration in stone architecture.” (Korea Joongang Daily)

Both pagodas were designated as Treasures in 1963. Their elevation to National Treasures 62 years on underscores their historical and artistic value in the context of Goryeo dynasty Buddhist culture. 

While the achievements of the Goryeo era include establishing relations with the southern kingdoms of what is now China to stabilize national sovereignty, and progressive taxation policies, Goryeo is perhaps most notable for providing an environment in which the arts were able to flourish, leading to the creation of countless sophisticated works by this Buddhist state. Buddhism in Goryeo also evolved in ways that rallied support for the state to protect the kingdom from external threats.

According to local media reports, archaeological surveys have indicated that both temple sites remained active until the late Joseon period: Gaesimsa into the late 16th century and Bowonsa until the 17th or 18th century. The KHS will receive public opinions over a 30-day notice period before finalizing the National Treasure designations through the Cultural Heritage Committee.

See more

Korea to designate two medieval pagodas as national treasures (Korea Joongang Daily)
Five-story Stone Pagoda at Bowonsa Temple Site, Seosan (Korea Heritage Service)
Five-story Stone Pagoda at Gaesimsa Temple Site, Yecheon (Korea Heritage Service)

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