Tomb of King Munmu

It takes about 50 minutes by car from Gyeongju to Bonggili Beach to arrive at Donghae. Looking at the blue waters of the East China Sea, you can see a small but beautiful stone island not far from the sea. This small stone island is the tomb in the sea of the 30th king of Silla (BC57-AD935) after the unification of the Three Kingdoms (AD661-681). This mausoleum in the sea, which is unique in the world, was built according to the last words of King Wenwu. The king hopes to become a dragon in the sea after his death to fight against Japanese pirates and defend the motherland. His descendants, according to the king's wishes, held a funeral after the king's death on a small stone island on the seaside of Bonggil near Gyeongju. First, in the center of the stone island with a circumference of 200 meters, a lake in the shape of a cross is dug from east to west, north and south, and then a stone 3.6 meters high, 2.85 meters wide and 0.9 meters thick is placed at a depth of 2 meters, and the remains are placed under the stone. Scholars are still debating whether the ashes or the remains were placed. A waterway was built so that the king who turned into a dragon could rest in the temple of thanksgiving. Traces of water channels were also found in the Temple of Thanksgiving. In autumn, the road from Gyeongju to Bonggil Beach, where King Munmu's Haejung Mausoleum is located, becomes a superb view.