First confirmation of the Baekje royal palace in the Communist Bible... Sites of palaces and large buildings revealed (comprehensive)

The reality of the Baekje royal palace within Gongsanseong Fortress, a UNESCO World Heritage site, has been confirmed for the first time.

Gongju City in South Chungcheong Province, South Chungcheong Province, Gongju University, and the National Heritage Administration unveiled the results and site of the 'Gongju Gongsanseong Fortress excavation' conducted to identify the spatial structure of Baekje's royal castle to the public on the 11th.

As Gongsanseong Fortress received attention as the royal castle of Baekje, partial excavations were conducted starting in 1980, and full-scale academic excavations were promoted in accordance with the 'Master Plan for Excavations' established after being registered as a World Heritage Site in 2015.

The excavation team identified various remnants and traces that provide insight into the spatial structure of the palace in the Ssangsujeong area within Gongsanseong Fortress, including a large building site from the Ungjin period of Baekje, a long-style building site, fence facilities, and a pond site.

The Ssangsujeong area was presumed to be a royal palace site as many Baekje roof tiles were unearthed during the initial excavation (1985-1986).

Afterwards, through continuous investigation, it was confirmed that this was a corridor-shaped building site, similar to a corridor-shaped corridor, and that a large building site was located in the center toward the south.

Gongju City explained that the long-style building site was approximately 26 to 34 meters in length, and the palace space was divided according to function and hierarchy in the east-west and north-south directions.

The large building has 7 rooms on the front and 3 rooms on the sides, with an east-west length of 32.3m and a side width of 14.6m. This is evaluated as showing the interconnectedness of Baekje royal palace architectural styles as it is very similar in structure and scale to the large building sites in Gwanbuk-ri, Buyeo, and Wanggung-ri, Iksan.

A valley with a depth of about 3 to 7 meters was filled in the center of the palace site, and a large square site was created with a north-south length of about 104 meters and an east-west width of about 87 meters. An earthen platform was installed on the northern and western slopes of the palace site.

In particular, in 2019, a large-scale gate, which is an entrance facility to the royal palace, was also confirmed.

Gongju City explained that the palace was structured with a 10m-wide road in the center and large-scale palace facilities on both sides.

One palace is about 40m east-west, about 23m north-south, and about 9-11m high, and the two palaces are symmetrical in the north-south direction.

Gongju City officials added that this has great historical and academic value in that it is a key relic that clearly proves the location of the royal palace within Ungjinseong Fortress, the royal castle of Baekje.

This is the first time that the site of a royal palace from the Baekje era has been confirmed.

Seo Jeong-seok, director of the museum at Kongju University, who led the excavation team, said, “It is the first time in the entire Baekje period that a royal palace site has been discovered,” adding, “There were also the Hanseong Baekje and Sabi Baekje periods, but the royal palace site was not found.”

At this performance report, lacquered armor and barding, relics excavated from Gongsanseong Fortress, recreated through historical research and restoration over the past 10 years were also unveiled.

After the excavation, the traditional techniques contained in the excavated artifacts were systematically identified through conservation treatment and data analysis.

In the future, the excavation team plans to establish a close cooperation system with the National Heritage Administration, South Chungcheong Province, and Kongju University to continue investigation and research and discuss conservation directions together.

Gongju City said, “Through this excavation, the true nature of the Gongsanseong Fortress royal palace site has been revealed to the world,” and added, “We will continue to closely investigate the Gongsanseong Fortress royal palace site to further strengthen the historical and cultural status of Gongju, the royal capital of Baekje.”