Mahyeonsanseong Fortress, Gimhae

According to the entry on fortress sites for Gimhae Dohobu in the Sinjeung dongguk yeoji seungnam (Newly Augmented Survey of the Geography of Korea): "Mahyeon Fortress, also called Gwanyeosanseong (Widow Mountain Fortress). It lies 30 ri to the north, has a circumference of 1,300 cheok, and has one well." As this is all that is recorded, the details of its construction cannot be known. According to one theory it was built in the reign of King Suro of Garak, but this is not considered reliable. The fortress is reached by following the local road from Bongnim, the seat of Saengnim-myeon Township, north for about 4km towards Miryang and Samnyangjin, to Mahyeon village; the mountain fortress lies across from the village, on the right-hand side of the road. The fortress was built around the summit of a steep, isolated peak about 215m above sea level. Since the eastern side and part of the northern side of the mountain consist of natural rock cliffs, the wall makes use of these cliffs, and stone ramparts were built only on the west and south. The long axis of the wall runs north–south, following the terrain, and the centre of the western side curves slightly inward, giving the fortress as a whole the shape of a silkworm cocoon. Although much of the wall has collapsed, it survives comparatively well, and the sites of gates remain on both the north and south sides. The wall was built of natural stone, wide at the base and narrowing towards the top. At the steep, central part of the western side, an auxiliary wall was built below the main rampart, forming a two-tier structure, apparently to prevent collapse. The wall is about 600m long in total; the best-preserved sections stand about 3m high, reaching about 4m at the top. The north gate is narrow at the centre and widens towards both the inside and outside; in particular, the outer wall beside the gate was extended so that the interior of the fortress cannot be seen directly from outside. It is a typical temoe-style mountain fortress, with its wall built around the summit of a single peak.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Gimhae, Gyeongnam

Designation

Provincial Monument · 시도기념물