The Korea Heritage Service, which excavates and investigates the ancient capital of Silla, found the location of the "Donggung" where the crown prince of Silla resided.
On the 6th, the Korea Heritage Service held a press conference to unveil the achievements of a decade-long excavation project at the core heritage site of the ancient capital of Silla and confirmed that the Donggung is located to the east of Wolji (formerly known as Anapji), not on the large structure site to the west.
The Donggung was a space used by the Silla crown prince. It had been thought to be on the west side of Wolji, located to the east of the Silla royal palace, Wolsong, but recent investigations revealed an additional structure at a lower elevation than the existing Donggung site found on the eastern side of Wolji.
The Korea Heritage Service noted, "It is appropriate to consider the building site on the eastern side of Wolji as the Donggung, and to regard the previously presumed building site on the western side as the king's space," adding, "It appears that the Donggung structure was purposefully designed to reflect the hierarchical difference between the king and the crown prince from the very beginning of the land formation stage."
Artifacts previously discovered around Wolji are also being re-evaluated. Ivory dice and engraved bronze plates found in 2017 and 2022, respectively, are interpreted as items that could have been used by the crown prince, excavated from the living space of the Donggung.
Korea Heritage Service Director Choi Eung-cheon said, "Finding the hidden 1 cm of history and reviving it into living history is what the Korea Heritage Service does best," and stated that he will do his utmost in future investigations and research.