Sahmyook University international students had a historical and cultural experience at Taegangneung, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Sahmyook University and the Chosun Royal Tombs Central District Management Office (hereinafter referred to as the Chosun Royal Tombs Central District) of the Palace Relics Headquarters of the Cultural Heritage Administration held ‘Walking with Historical Stories and Music at Taegangneung, Garden of the Gods’ at Taegangneung, Hwarang-ro, Nowon-gu, Seoul, from June 19th to 21st.

This program was prepared as part of the ‘World Heritage Chosun Royal Tombs Sorakhang’ project hosted by the Chosun Royal Tombs Central District. It is a project to re-examine the value of the World Heritage Site and provide opportunities to experience royal tombs by operating various cultural and artistic programs on the themes of humanities and nature, such as history, people, architecture, and natural ecology, in the Royal Tombs of the Chosun Dynasty and the Royal Tombs Road.

One hundred twenty international students from Sahmyook University participated in the program for three days. A professional commentator accompanied the event and told the story of the history of Queen Munjeong (Taereung) and Myeongjong (Gangneung) and the story of the trees in the forest path. In addition, they enjoyed and experienced traditional music performances such as geomungo, daegeum, jeongga, and pulpiri, which contain the stories of the royal tombs of the Chosun Dynasty in the forest.

Hinano Anzai, a Japanese exchange student at Sahmyook University, said, “I had never had a chance to learn about Korean history before, but it was such a refreshing experience. Thanks to the narrator’s detailed explanation, I better understood the scenes I saw in Korean dramas. Korean traditional music was also very interesting.”

Meanwhile, Sahmyook University and the Chosun Royal Tombs Central District will hold the ‘Chosun Royal Tombs Short Form Contest’ for international students. The project aims to spread the value and meaning of the Chosun Royal Tombs, a world heritage site, through the perspective of foreigners.