Wisteria of Oryu-ri, Gyeongju

Wisteria is a climbing vine whose flowers usually appear at the tips of the branches, blooming pale purple in May. There are four wisteria vines at Oryu-ri, growing in two pairs. They are 11–12 m tall, with girths of about 0.24 m, 0.28 m, 1.72 m and 0.60 m respectively — large climbing plants. They stand beside a small stream at the entrance to Oryu-ri village, entangled with a nearby Japanese hackberry tree so that they appear to be embracing it. This site, where the wisteria grows, was once a hunting ground where kings of Silla enjoyed the chase together with their subjects, and it was called Yongnim, or "Dragon Forest"; because the wisteria grew within this Yongnim it came to be called Yongdeung, or "Dragon Wisteria" — also said to be so named because the thick stem, climbing up another tree, resembled a dragon. It is said that if the dried petals of this wisteria are placed in the pillows of a newly married couple, their affection for one another will deepen, and that a couple whose love has cooled can revive it by boiling and eating the leaves; visitors come here in this belief, on account of the following legend. Long ago in Silla, a farmer living in this village had two beautiful daughters. In the house next door lived a sturdy young man, and, unknown to each other, both sisters had secretly come to adore him. One day, when the young man was to leave for the battlefield, the two sisters realised for the first time that they both loved the same man. Being close and devoted sisters, they each firmly resolved to yield to the other. Then, one day, they unexpectedly heard news that the young man had died; the sisters embraced each other, wept in sorrow, and threw themselves into a pond. Afterwards, two wisteria vines began to grow beside the pond. The young man from next door, thought to have died, had in fact returned home, having become an admirable hwarang, an elite youth warrior of Silla. On hearing that the two sisters had died because of him, he too threw himself into the pond, and at that spot a Japanese hackberry tree began to grow. The wisteria climbs tightly around this hackberry tree, and it is said that the love the three could not fulfil in life was fulfilled after death. The wisteria of Oryu-ri, Gyeongju carries this poignant legend, deeply steeped in the sentiment of our ancestors. It holds great biological value as an old and large tree, as well as great cultural value as a record preserving a legend handed down in the Gyeongju region, and so it has been designated and protected as a natural monument.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Gyeongju, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Natural Monument · 천연기념물