Gyeongju Tomb of Queen Seondeok

About this place

Located at the summit of Nangsan in Gyeongju, the tomb of the 27th sovereign of Silla, Queen Seondeok (r. 632–647), was constructed around 646. It is a circular earthen mound 6.8 m high and 23.6 m in diameter, with two tiers of protective stones at the base using natural stones but no other ornamentation. Queen Seondeok was born the daughter of King Jinpyeong, who had no male heir, and became Silla's first female ruler by virtue of the sacred-bone status. During her 16-year reign she built Cheomseongdae, Bunhwangsa, and notably the nine-story wooden pagoda of Hwangnyongsa — the largest in Silla — and together with Kim Chunchu (later King Muyeol) and general Kim Yusin laid the foundation for the unification of the Three Kingdoms. According to the Samguk Yusa, the queen foretold the date of her own death and requested burial in the Heaven of the Thirty-Three gods (Tavatimsa). When asked where that heaven was, she said it was at the foot of Nangsan. After King Munmu built Sacheonwangsa Temple on Nangsan following the unification, her courtiers realized the mountain's summit was indeed Tavatimsa.