Lacebark Pine of Yonggung-ri, Yesan

The bark of the lacebark pine peels off in broad flakes to reveal white patches beneath, which is why it is also known as baekgolsong, or "white-bone pine." It is native to China, and it is said that during the Joseon period envoys travelling to and from China brought the tree back and planted it. The lacebark pine of Yonggung-ri is estimated to be around 200 years old, standing 13.2m tall with a trunk circumference of 1.5m at chest height. The trunk splits into three branches near the base, but two have died, leaving only one and giving the tree a somewhat sparse appearance. Its bark is rough and distinctly white, and it grows alongside young lacebark pines nearby. This tree is said to have been planted by the scholar Kim Jeong-hui (pen name Chusa) beside the tomb of his great-great-grandfather Kim Heung-gyeong, using a seed he carried home in his brush case after accompanying his father Kim No-gyeong to Yanjing, the capital of Qing China (present-day Beijing), in October 1809, the ninth year of King Sunjo of Joseon, and returning. Kim Jeong-hui's family home in Seoul also had a lacebark pine bestowed by King Yeongjo (r. 1724–1776), so the lacebark pine came to be regarded almost as a symbol of the Kim family. The lacebark pine of Yonggung-ri, Yesan, is a rare and old pine of great biological conservation value, and it also holds great value as cultural material illustrating exchanges with China and the customs by which people of the time prized the lacebark pine. For these reasons it is designated and protected as a Natural Monument.

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Where it is

Region

Yesan, Chungnam

Designation

Natural Monument · 천연기념물