Korea Gyeongju City of Royal Mounds

1. SOUTH KOREA Gyeongju, City of Royal Mounds

2. When you take a stroll through downtown Gyeongju, you will immediately spot the eye-catching collection of giant tumuli that look like hills.

3. Grave of General Kim Yu-Sin These verdant, well-decorated tombs punctuate the city standing on a borderline between the past and present, while several dozen tumuli will sometimes form a beautiful park GyeongjuDaereungwon Tomb Complex

4. GyeongjuDaereungwon Tomb Complex (Tumuli Park)

5. Royal Tomb of Queen Seondeok

7. Royal Tomb of King Muyeo

8. Pine forest surrounding the Royal Tomb of King Heungdeok Trees surrounding the Royal Tomb of King Jinpyeong

9. Hwangnam-dong Tomb Cluster Metasequoia & Hwangnam-dong Tomb Cluster

10. GyeongjuDaereungwon Tomb Complex (Tumuli Park)

11. Panorama of Daereungwon Tomb Complex

12. There are 23 tombs in Daereungwon Tomb Park, or Tumuli Park as it is more commonly called. Most date to the early rule of the Silla Kingdom. The large royal tombs have survived, as opposed to those of lesser mortals, for the large chambers were first lined with wood for support, before being covered with boulders then earth. Lastly came the grass, a flowing greenery suitable for eternal slumber Sawleaf Zelkova tree

15. Maple tree Sawleaf Zelkova tree

16. Korean rhododendron Crepe myrtles (Lagerstroemia)

17. Crepe myrtles (Lagerstroemia)

25. Crepe myrtles (Lagerstroemia) and Korean rhododendron

26. Crepe myrtles (Lagerstroemia)

27. Crepe myrtles (Lagerstroemia)

28. Crepe myrtles bloom (Lagerstroemia)

31. Maple blooms show up in clusters, each containing roughly a dozen small flowers

36. Paeonia suffruticosa 'Chu Wu' GyeongJuDaereungwon Entrance of Cheonmachong Cheonmachong (Heavenly Horse Tomb) in this area has a small museum inside that is open to the public. This is the only tomb you can enter. The mound is 12.7 meters high and 47 meters in diameter Gyeongju ArtsCenter. This five story building has two basement

37. The tumuli are the tombs of Silla-era nobles and royalty, built during the 4th-6th century. The Silla ruling class began burying their dead in wooden chambers with valuable grave goods. The wooden chambers were covered with stone mounds and then with earthen mounds, creating the large hillocks visible today. Cheonmachong (Heavenly Horse Tomb) tomb was excavated on April 6, 1973 with 11,500 items recovered

39. Relics from Cheonmachong Tomb.

40. Relics from Cheonmachong Tomb. Some of the artifacts found during the excavation are displayed at the tomb, although most are replicas of the original pieces on display at the Gyeongju National Museum

42. Cheonmachong Tomb (Heavenly Horse Tomb) The name comes from a painting of a heavenly horse that was found during the tomb’s excavation

43. Heavenly horses of Silla Ceremonial saddle piece made of painted bark stitched with leather 

44. Gyeongju was the capital of the ancient kingdom of Silla (57 BC – 935 AD), which ruled about two-thirds of the Korean Peninsula at its height between the 7th and 9th centuries, for close to one thousand years. Later Silla was a prosperous and wealthy country, and its metropolitan capital of Gyeongju was the fourth largest city in the world

45. Gold Cap from Cheonmachong Tomb

46. Cheonmachong Tomb (Heavenly Horse Tomb) Gilt-bronze openwork saddle front and back

47. Luminous Shellfish: A vessel made from Okinawan shells, which is a representative relic of the maritime exchange between ancient Silla and Japan

48. Silver belt

49. Hamess pendant Gilt-bronze horse headband: gilt-bronze haeng-yeop Decorative ornament attached horseback