Korean TraditionTomb
Daewangam
The rocky islet off the Gyeongju coast traditionally identified as the underwater tomb of King Munmu of Silla, who asked to be buried in the East Sea so that he could become a dragon and guard the kingdom.
About Daewangam
The great king's rock
Daewangam, 'rock of the great king', is a group of rocks about two hundred meters off Bonggil Beach on the East Sea coast of Gyeongju. It is traditionally identified as the burial place of King Munmu (r. 661-681), who according to the Samguk Sagi asked to be cremated and buried in the sea, and according to the Samguk Yusa wished to become a dragon to guard Silla. A pool in the center of the rocks, with a large stone lying in it, has been interpreted as the resting place of his remains, though whether ashes were placed there has not been proven.
Gameunsa and Iyeondae
Nearby on the shore are the ruins of Gameunsa, the temple King Sinmun completed for his father, with its two stone pagodas, and the pavilion site of Iyeondae, from which, in the Samguk Yusa, Sinmun watched the floating mountain that brought the bamboo for the flute Manpasikjeok. Excavations at Gameunsa found an unusual space beneath the main hall's floor, traditionally explained as a passage for the dragon.
A living site
Daewangam is a Historic Site of South Korea. Shamans perform rites on the beach facing the rock, and many visitors come to watch the sunrise over it.
On the map
Daewangam among other places of the Korean Tradition.
Sources and further reading
Source notes
These references are recorded in the catalog. Their passage wording and translation have not been checked, so quotations are not displayed here.
- Kim Busik, Samguk Sagi, Annals of Silla, King Munmu, year 21 (paraphrase)
About this entry
By Elizabeth Stein for Mythos Atlas. About the author. Editorial notes are grounded in the site's cited sources and can be challenged through the contact page.
Coordinates mark where the myths place a site, or where the tradition locates it today. Mythic realms are left off the map or marked as symbolic placements.