Rebuilding a Capital – Baekje Cultural Complex in Buyeo

Sometimes, I really wish we (meaning me, and me alone) had a time machine. Although we still have some pretty amazing places around the world, for every surviving monument, a hundred have been destroyed by war, burned by fire, and simply weathered away with time (source: guess-work using the proven ‘it sounds about right’ method). What would you do if your once proud civilization had it’s glorious capital destroyed. If you are Korean, you rebuild it.

Baekje Reborn

This last weekend, I finally made it out to Buyeo, the former capital of Baekje. After visiting the National Museum of Korea in Seoul last year, I gained an interest in Korean historical kingdoms, so this visit was a long time coming.

Baekje was one of the three kingdoms that ruled Korea from 18 B.C.E.- 668 C.E. (C.E. is the non-religious way of saying A.D. just in case you’re wondering). Following its demise, the capital city which also goes by the name of Sabi was wiped out from the face of the earth and reduced to a hand full of historical documents (read: footnotes)  and ancient poems of later kingdoms. In 1993, following further archaeological discoveries (a fancy way of saying they were randomly digging in the dirt and got lucky) in the region, the Korean government made a plan of massive proportions (read: $$$). With a budget of 690 million dollars, they planned to rebuild Sabi / Buyeo on the outskirts of where it used to stand 1500 years ago. Straight up dope… I can’t put that any more eloquently, sorry.

 

The Baekje Cultural Complex (Baekje Cultural Land)

At first glance (read: after coming across it on the pamphlet at the Buyeo bus station), this totally sounds like a cheesy theme park and I almost passed it up because of that. With a huge Lotte Hotel near by, I thought it would be another one of those overcrowded and underwhelming ‘things to see’ that the Korean government tries to shove down visitors’ throats which end up being much blander than advertised (if I am ever considered for a job there, I hope they don’t read this line). I was wrong.

I can’t really think of the words to describe how awesome this place is, so instead, here is a picture walk through what I feel, is a top 10 thing to see in Korea.

 

 

1) Jeongyangmun

Esentially, the front door.

Baekje Cultural Complex Sabi Buyeo

 

 

2) Sabigung

The Royal Palace

Here is the main hall…

Baekje Cultural Complex Sabi Palace Main Hall Buyeo

Cool looking corridor. On the walls are pictures of the excavation history of Buyeo over the last 3 decades.

Baekje Cultural Complex Sabi Palace Buyeo

I’m always impressed by the detail in Korean buildings.

Baekje Cultural Complex Sabi Palace Buyeo 2

Dragon patterned tiles…

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Tiles

 

 

3) Neungsa Temple

Possibly the most bad-ass wooden pagoda ever. Neungsa is thought to be one of the most important temples of the time. At its height, Baekje actually introduced Buddhism to Japan.

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Neungsa

Here is another view…

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Neungsa 2

 

 

4) Royal Tomb Park

Given that the actual tombs still exist and are within the same city, you could just visit the real ones… but it is a nice inclusion nonetheless.

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Tombs

They really just look like lumps. Nowhere near as complex and beautiful as the Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty.

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Tombs 2

 

 

5) Living Cultural Village

You should really click on the picture to enlarge. Quite incredible.

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Culture Village

If you look closely, no cement is used on the walls. The stones are mearly stacked nicely. In some of the more rural places like Sado, they really look like this.

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Village

6) Wiryeseong Castle

This is the first palace of King Onjo, founder of Baekje in 18 B.C.E.

He built a pretty sweet wall with a moat!

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Wiryeseong

Their fortress was made of dirt, but hey, it was 2000 years ago.

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Wiryeseong 2

Inside the Wiryeseong Castle

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Wiryeseong 3

In front of the throne is this ‘punishment table.’

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Wiryeseong 4

7) Baekje Historical Museum

It has the history of how they built the complex as well as a bunch of Baekje stuff. Unfortunately, it was closing when we got there so we only skimmed it.

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Museum

It was some pretty nice miniatures!

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo Museum 2

8) Not Done Yet

In the true spirit of Korea, they decided to open the complex years before it was fully finished. There is still quite a bit of construction, but not enough to cause an annoyance. It looks like they are planning on putting some guards in and making it even better.

Baekje Cultural Complex Buyeo improvements

Baejke Cultural Complex Buyeo Shield

690 million dollars is a huge investment, but personally, I don’t think you can put a price tag on culture. The Baekje Cultural Complex is worth every penny. Check it out if you come to South Korea.

Julio Moreno
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8 thoughts on “Rebuilding a Capital – Baekje Cultural Complex in Buyeo

  • March 1, 2016 at 4:22 pm
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    Thank you, Julio Moreno, for the great article.

    Reply
  • December 7, 2016 at 1:13 am
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    Hello Julio, thank you for the great article.
    May i ask where did you stay in Buyeo? How did you make a booking?
    thanks~

    Reply
    • December 7, 2016 at 1:37 am
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      I usually search 모텔 when I get there. It means “motel” in Korean. From there i get a list of like 10 clustered motels and I just ask about the rates in person. Unfortunately, this doesn’t work if you don’t speak Korean.
      I dunno about English friendly options unfortunately.

      Reply
      • December 7, 2016 at 2:13 pm
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        ahh, so you only made accommodation booking when you were in Buyeo? I thought about doing that too, but kinda skeptical that there might be no empty rooms when i get there, but yet thinking that i may have chance as Buyeo is not a tourist hot spot.. hmm

        Anyway, from your two posts on Buyeo, how long did it take you to visit finish all the places mentioned? How long for just the Baekje cultural complex?

        Reply
        • December 7, 2016 at 6:12 pm
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          The complex takes 1-3 hours, depending on how into it you are and pictures. I also looked at the museum next door.
          The other stuff, another 2-4 hrs. They are a bit separated from each other so travel time is a factor.
          It definitely can be done as a day trip from daejeon or even Seoul if you’re efficient about your time.
          The accommodation does take some Korean skill, but you could get by fine f you look up certain key words like “bam” which means night and so on. You definitely should not have an issue finding accommodation. I have never booked ahead for anything in Korea with the exception of a hanok during the andong mask festival, and only because I know they get sold out that particular day. But I’ve travelled all over Korea on holidays like chuseok and seollal without issue.

          Reply
  • December 7, 2016 at 8:49 pm
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    i see i see. thank you for your tips! 😀 been a great help

    Reply

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