Sungnyemun Burns Down
February 11th, 2008 by BellhopA historic gate of Seoul and South Korea’s National Treasure, Sungnyemun, also known as Namdaemun or South Gate, was devastated by fire last February 10, 2008. All attempts to salvage the historic landmark were futile.
“An overnight fire destroyed a 610-year-old landmark that was considered the top national treasure, officials said Monday.
…
The fire broke out Sunday night and burned down the wooden structure at the top of the Namdaemun gate that once formed part of a wall that encircled the capital.”*
Sungnyemun is the southern gate of the original walls from the Joseon Dynasty surrounding Seoul to protect it from tigers and other outside forces. What used to be the oldest wooden-built structure in Seoul is now reduced to ruins. From the start of its construction in 1395 until 1398, it has surpassed several kings of Korea and the occupation of the Japanese in the earlier part of 1900s. It was extensively damaged in the Korean war, paving way to a major repair in 1962, when it became Korea’s National Treasure No. 1 and opened to the public recently in 2006 for the first time.
Repair and restoration of the gate is being undertaken by the Cultural Heritage Administration who said it would take three years to fully restore the gate.
If ever you go to South Korea in the next three years, make sure to visit Namdaeumun before this historic national treasure becomes damaged or destroyed again.
*Source: Fire Destroys South Korean Landmark
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February 11th, 2008 at 6:45 pm
very nice gate, in China, also some nice stone gate, there is one in Jianshui, called ChaoYangMen. It is very nice and old , looks like Tian An Men. www . forest-cafe. org
February 14th, 2008 at 11:46 am
Happy Valentine’s day! Hearty heart heart!
April 21st, 2008 at 2:33 pm
Wow, that’s kinda sad. I never found out about it from any of the papers; I for one am very conscious about preserving ancient, historical artifacts and landmarks because they aren’t just physical structures. They represent a country’s/ people’s pride on their culture, value system, and achievements, aside from the fact that it also represents backbreaking human labor over a course of years. And for it to be destroyed by fire in an instant is just….. sad.
Thanks so much for sharing this article.