Historic Road Found

[Anchor Lead]

A major paved road has been discovered at the Mongchontoseong Fortress of the early Hanseong Baekje period. We’ll take you there in our next report.

[Pkg]

The Mongchontoseong Fortress in Seoul was built before the capital of Baekje was relocated to Buyeo. A large paved road has been discovered near the north gate of the fortress. Built on a layer of earth, the road was paved with gravel, sand and clay. The newly discovered road leads to the nearby Pungnaptoseong Fortress. Given that the distance between the two fortresses is around 700 meters, the road presumably served to connect them.Built by Baekje, the road was later expanded by Gogureo and presumably remained in use up to the Unified Silla period. A piece of earthenware representing the early Hanseong Baekje period has been found among the traces of cavities on the road with a character meaning "government" inscribed on it.

[Soundbite] Lee In-sook(Seoul Baekje Museum) : "This means that this piece of celadon was used by a government organ that was based in the fortress. It also says clearly that it was produced during the Baekje period in the fourth or fifth century."

The discovered road has drawn attention from academia, as it serves as further proof that the Mongchontoseong Fortress was one of the major fortifications during the Hanseong Baekje period.