Setting Off to Find Jincheon's Cultural Heritage

Jincheon is home to the birthplace of General Kim Yu-sin, who played a crucial role in the unification of the Three Kingdoms. The wooden pagoda at Botapsa Temple is also a site worth seeing at least once when you visit, and Korea's only bell museum is worth a look too. A variety of hands-on activities for children are also available.Source: Chungcheong, More Charming the Longer You Stay

Along the way

1. 1

   Birthplace and Placenta Chamber of General Kim Yu-sin

   김유신 탄생지와 태실

   This is the birthplace of General Kim Yu-sin, later honored as King Heungmu, a 13th-generation descendant of King Suro, the founder of Gaya. General Kim Yu-sin was born in 595, the 17th year of King Jinpyeong's reign, in Gyeyang Village, Sanggye-ri, Jincheon-eup, as the son of General Kim Seo-hyeon, governor of Manno-gun (Manno being the old name for Jincheon). At age 15, in 609 (the 31st year of King Jinpyeong), he became a hwarang, and after distinguishing himself in the battle of Nangbiseong, he became the military governor of Amnyangju. \nMoreLess

   

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2. 2

   Botapsa Temple

   보탑사

   In Yeongok-ri Birip-dong, a border area between Silla and Goguryeo during the Three Kingdoms period that had long been known only as the site of a large Goryeo-era temple, this temple was built on the eve of the 21st century to pray for Korea's boundless development and for unification, the long-cherished wish of the Korean people, while also recreating traditional wooden architecture, so as to instill pride in a culturally rich nation in the next generation. \nIn 1991, a team of traditional architecture heritage experts surveyed the site, and construction began in May 1992 under the supervision of cultural heritage expert Sin Yeong-hun. The first floor enshrines Buddha statues facing the four directions around a central pillar, the second floor enshrines sutras, and the third floor enshrines the Maitreya triad. \nMoreLess

   

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3. 3

   Lunch (Cheongsan Garden)

   점심식사( 청산가든)

   An award winner at the Jincheon-gun local food contest, this restaurant is a model business in Jincheon-gun with a 20-year tradition. Its Cheongsan soy-marinated crab, made with a house-developed sauce and roe-filled blue crab, is sold nationwide, and it also offers neat dishes such as Korean beef grilled over charcoal, and Chungcheong-style cheonggukjang (fermented soybean stew) and doenjang jjigae (soybean paste stew). It is divided into a large hall seating 50 people and quiet rooms for private dining, offering a pleasant space to eat. There is a spacious garden resting area in front of the restaurant where guests can relax after their meal. The soy-marinated crab is sold nationwide by delivery and can be ordered from the Cheongsan Garden website.\nMoreLess

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4. 4

   Jincheon Bell Museum

   진천 종박물관

   Jincheon Bell Museum opened in September 2005 to research, collect, exhibit, and preserve Korean bells, and, through special exhibitions, education, and various other activities, to promote the artistic value and excellence of Korean bells, which have been recognized worldwide. It also carries deep significance for being built in Jincheon, home to the Seokjang-ri site, surveyed as the earliest known ancient ironmaking site in Korea. The discovery at Jincheon Seokjang-ri of an actual example of an ancient ironmaking furnace dated to the 4th century—Korea's first such find—indicates that metal craftwork production was also possible there. In nearby Uncheon-dong, Cheongju, a Buddhist temple bell from the late Unified Silla period was excavated, and an iron flagpole from the Goryeo-era Yongdusa temple site also survives.\nMoreLess

   

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