Mireuksa Temple Site and Royal Tombs in Songsan-ri

Waypoint introductions and full write-ups

1. 1. Mireuksa Temple Site

   On a wide plain near Iksan, in the south-west of Korea, a large stone pagoda stands beneath a mountain, slightly incomplete and all the more striking for it. This is the west pagoda of Mireuksa, once the largest Buddhist temple of the Baekje kingdom, founded in the early seventh century by King Mu. The pagoda is the oldest and largest surviving stone pagoda in Korea, and after decades of collapse and a cement repair in the early twentieth century, it was carefully dismantled and restored in a project that took around twenty years, finishing in 2019. The temple site is part of the Baekje Historic Areas, listed by UNESCO in 2015.

   Read the complete Mireuksa Temple Site write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Mireuksa Temple Site is where the day begins. Next is Donam-seown.

2. 2. Donam-seown

   Donam Seowon is a Confucian academy in the countryside near Nonsan, in South Chungcheong province, and it is one of nine seowon that UNESCO listed together in 2019. Seowon were private academies founded by scholars of the Joseon dynasty, where young men studied the Confucian classics and honoured the memory of great teachers through rituals. Donam was founded in the early seventeenth century to commemorate Kim Jang-saeng, a renowned scholar of rites, and his students, and it played an important role in the intellectual life of the period.

   Read the complete Donam-seown write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Donam-seown comes up about 43 km into the recorded legs. Next is Royal Tombs in Neungsan-ri.

3. 3. Royal Tombs in Neungsan-ri

   Seven grassy mounds rise on a hillside outside Buyeo, smooth and green, looking almost like a landscape garden. They are the royal tombs of Neungsan-ri, burial places of kings of Baekje, one of the three kingdoms of ancient Korea, during the period when Buyeo, then called Sabi, was its capital, from 538 to 660. The tombs were robbed long ago, but their stone chambers survive, and one has painted walls showing the guardian animals of the four directions and lotus flowers. They are part of the UNESCO listing of the Baekje historic areas, together with sites in Gongju, Buyeo and Iksan.

   Read the complete Royal Tombs in Neungsan-ri write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   about 68 km into the recorded legs you reach Royal Tombs in Neungsan-ri. Next is Royal Tombs in Songsan-ri.

4. 4. Royal Tombs in Songsan-ri

   In 1971, workers digging drainage near a group of ancient burial mounds above the Geum river at Gongju broke into a brick tomb that had never been looted. Inside lay the remains and treasures of King Muryeong of Baekje, who died in 523, and his queen: gold crowns, ornaments, a stone tablet naming the king, and thousands of objects. It was one of the greatest archaeological finds in Korean history, and it is the centrepiece of the Royal Tombs at Songsan-ri, part of the Baekje Historic Areas World Heritage Site listed in 2015.

   Read the complete Royal Tombs in Songsan-ri write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Royal Tombs in Songsan-ri, about halfway. Next is back through Royal Tombs in Neungsan-ri.

5. 5. back through Royal Tombs in Neungsan-ri

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Royal Tombs in Neungsan-ri write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Royal Tombs in Neungsan-ri sits at 133 km, about halfway. Next is back through Donam-seown.

6. 6. back through Donam-seown

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Donam-seown write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   back through Donam-seown comes up about 159 km into the recorded legs. Next is Mireuksa Temple Site.

7. 7. Mireuksa Temple Site

   Return visit. Read the place description above.

   Read the complete Mireuksa Temple Site write-up.

   Recorded stop-planning note

   May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.

   Planning note

   Mireuksa Temple Site closes the day.