Fossil Site of Petrified Tree Fern on Geummubong Peak, Chilgok

The fossil site of petrified tree fern on Geummubong Peak, Chilgok lies about 4km southeast of Waegwan-eup. The tree fern fossils are the remains of fern-like plants with leaves similar to bracken that flourished in this area about 130 million years ago. Their leaves resemble those of ordinary ferns, but the plants had a woody trunk and branches, with the leaves attached to those branches - hence the name "tree fern". Tree ferns today grow naturally in tropical regions such as south-western Japan, Taiwan and southern China, but the trunk of the tree fern fossils found in Korea is very different from that of tree ferns now growing naturally in the tropics. This gives the site great value as biological material for the study of plant evolution and distribution, as well as considerable value as a record of natural history, and it is accordingly designated and protected as a natural monument. Note: the official name of this site was revised, with a change to the spacing of the Korean name, by public notice on 26 July 2021.

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Where it is

Region

Chilgok, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Natural Monument · 천연기념물