Gwakji Shell Midden

A shell midden (paechong) is a site formed by shells and other daily refuse discarded by people who lived by hunting, fishing and gathering, and it is also known as a shell mound. The Gwakji Shell Midden is a large-scale site where surface artefacts are scattered over an area of more than 10,000 pyeong (a traditional unit of area, each pyeong about 3.3 square metres), showing a continuous sequence of shell-midden culture layers running from the Iron Age to the Joseon period. At the base, a cultural layer of perforated-pattern pottery corresponding to the early Iron Age (300–0 BC) has been identified; above it lies a layer of reddish-brown, jar-shaped pottery of the Three Kingdoms period; and above that, in succession, a layer of deep bowl-shaped pottery of the Unified Silla period, followed by a layer containing various ceramics and earthenware of the Goryeo and Joseon periods. The main period represented by this shell midden corresponds to Jeju's Tamna period, that is, the Three Kingdoms and Unified Silla periods. The Gwakji Shell Midden provides important material for tracing the development of Jeju's ancient culture, and it has been designated a monument and preserved accordingly.

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Where it is

Region

Jeju City, Jeju

Designation

Provincial Monument · 시도기념물