Five-story Stone Pagoda in Nawon-ri, Gyeongju

A pagoda on a temple site at Nawon-ri, of a size that bears comparison with the pagodas at the Gameunsa and Goseonsa sites, the largest in the Gyeongju area. After a thousand years the stone has kept its pure white colour, which is why it is called the white pagoda of Nawon. Five storeys rise from a two-tier base. Apart from the base, the first body stone and the roof stones of the first and second storeys, every part is cut from a single stone. Columns are carved at the corners and across the middle of each face of the base — three to a face below, two above — and the body stone of each storey carries columns at its corners. The roof stones have sharp edges along their slopes with the four corners lifted a little, and five steps of support beneath. At the top a broken finial base and a cut-off central mast remain. The tight construction and the beauty of its proportions suggest the eighth century. Five-storey pagodas are rare around Gyeongju, and here the weight of the thing and the clean character of white granite come together well. Standing high in a mountain valley, it has a presence that takes over everything around it.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk

Designation

National Treasure · 국보