Tower architecture is part of Korea’s cultural heritage.
Tower originates from menhir. In the Bronze Age primitive men erected upright stones symbolizing the power of nature out of their desire to protect their tribes and become stronger than outsiders. In the course of this, they created the techniques of building towers with timber, stone and other materials. Among the famous old towers of Korea are the pagodas in the Kumgang Temple and the Pohyon Temple.
There was a 7-tiered tower in the Kumgang Temple, a temple built in 498 in the period of Koguryo in Taesong District, Pyongyang. The 67m-high wooden tower was the largest in the East at that time.
The octagonal 13-tiered pagoda, 10.03m high, in the front yard of Taeung Hall of the Pohyon Temple in Mt Myohyang is made of well-trimmed granite. It is one of the typical pagoda structures in the history of medieval Korea.
Besides, stone towers including the 3-tiered pagoda in the Singye Temple and the Saja (lion) Pagoda in Kumjang Hermitage are still well preserved despite the lapse of a long time. They give a good explanation of the contemporary architecture of the country.
What is striking in the old tower architecture of Korea is that the towers were not intended for people to mount. This shows that the Korean ancestors were highly creative enough to develop their own architectural skills, not copying other countries’ techniques.
The Korean-style tower architecture is still used in the DPRK.
Han Hyok
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