Tomb of King Suro, Gimhae

King Suro founded Geumgwan Gaya in AD 42, according to a thirteenth-century text that preserves the story: he descended from heaven in a golden egg on the hill of Gujibong, a short walk north of here, and six years later married a princess who had sailed from Ayodhya in India, Heo Hwang-ok. Gaya was a confederation of small states along the Nakdong river, rich in iron, which Silla absorbed in 532. The tomb is a single mound in a walled precinct, given its present form in 1580 when a descendant serving as provincial governor rebuilt it. The Gimhae Kim and Gimhae Heo clans, who trace themselves to Suro and his queen and number several million people, hold rites here in spring and autumn. On the inner gate are two fish facing each other. The same twin-fish emblem is found in Ayodhya, and it has been argued back and forth for a century whether that is proof of the queen's voyage or coincidence. The queen's own tomb is a kilometre away, with a pagoda of red stone she is said to have brought as ballast.

Original Text

Where it is

Region

Gimhae, Gyeongnam

Designation

Historic Site · 사적