Gaetaesa Temple (Nonsan)

About this place

Gaetaesa Temple (Nonsan) is a Buddhist temple located on the western slope of Cheonho Mountain (371.6 m). In 936 (the 19th year of King Taejo of Goryeo), King Taejo founded the temple to commemorate his victory over Sinjin of Later Baekje and the unification of the Later Three Kingdoms. He also renamed the mountain from Hwangsan to Cheonho Mountain. It is also said to be the place where Gyeonhwon — who had founded Later Baekje but later surrendered to Goryeo — died of illness. A portrait hall dedicated to King Taejo once stood here, where the state would receive oracles in times of crisis, and the temple maintained close ties with the royal family. However, during the late Goryeo period, the temple fell into decline after being raided by Japanese pirates, and was gradually rebuilt during the Joseon period and in the 1930s. Among the important cultural relics here are a Treasure-designated stone standing Buddha, a Chungcheongnam-do Folk Cultural Heritage iron cauldron (cheolhwak), and Chungcheongnam-do Cultural Heritage Materials including a five-story stone pagoda and a stone trough. The iron cauldron, formerly used for cooking soup for the monks, measures 3 m in diameter, 1 m in height, and 9.4 m in circumference.