What Did This Rock Mean to Prehistoric People? 50th Anniversary Academic Conference on Ulsan Daegok-ri Bangudae Petroglyphs Discovery

International Academic Conference 'Petroglyphs and Sacred Spaces'

13-14th at COEX Seoul and Ulsan City Hall

Petroglyph Promotion Thematic Presentations and Public Lectures Held

Petroglyphs of Bangudae, Ulsan. [Image source=Cultural Heritage Administration]

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The Ulsan Petroglyph Museum will hold an international academic conference titled "Petroglyphs and Sacred Spaces" from the 13th to the 14th at COEX Grand Ballroom Room 101 in Seoul.

This conference is organized to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the discovery of the Daegok-ri Bangudae Petroglyphs and to promote the value of this World Heritage site.

The Ulsan Petroglyph Museum plans to examine not only the petroglyphs themselves but also how the spaces surrounding the petroglyphs were perceived by prehistoric people.

On the morning of the first day, the 13th, Professor Emeritus Kang Bong-won of Gyeongju University will present on the topic "Bangudae and Cheonjeon-ri Petroglyphs: Chronology and Subsistence Economy," followed by Professor Jeon Ho-tae of Ulsan University presenting on "Silla People's Rock Faith and Sacred Spaces as Seen through Cheonjeon-ri Rock Engravings."

In the afternoon, Benjamin Bayester from the Museo Chileno de Arte Precolombino in Chile will present "Liminality, Pilgrimage, and Sacred Places in the El Medano Rock Paintings of the Atacama Desert, Chile," and Joe McDonald, Director of the Rock Art Research Centre at the University of Western Australia, will present "Whales, Whale Hunters, and Rituals: Perspectives from Australian Petroglyphs."

Additionally, Jan Magne Jørde from the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research will present "Hunting-Fishing-Gathering Petroglyphs and Sacred Places: Focusing on the Fenno-Scandian Region," and Nadezhda Lobanova from the Karelia Research Centre in Russia will present "Petroglyphs of Lake Onega and Sacred Spaces."

Presentations and Q&A sessions by international experts will be conducted via pre-recorded videos, considering difficulties in attending due to COVID-19.

On the second day, the 14th, various public lectures will be held for general citizens interested in petroglyphs.

Academic Conference Information Event Poster.

Former Director of the National Museum of Korea, Bae Ki-dong, will give a lecture titled "Bangudae Petroglyphs as a World Heritage," and Professor Kang In-wook of Kyung Hee University will lecture on "Eurasian Petroglyphs and Bangudae," discussing the global historical significance of the Daegok-ri Bangudae Petroglyphs.

Im Kyung-hee, a curator at the National Palace Museum of Korea, will give an easy-to-understand lecture on the meaning of World Heritage titled "What is UNESCO World Heritage?"

Finally, Son Ho-seon, Head of the Resource Environment Division at the Namhae Fisheries Research Institute, will share fascinating stories about whales in the petroglyphs through his lecture "Stories Told by the Whales of Bangudae Petroglyphs," drawing on his expertise as a whale specialist.

The Petroglyph Museum will broadcast the event live on its YouTube channel for Ulsan citizens who find it difficult to attend in person since the event is held in Seoul, and the event video will be screened in the main conference room on the 2nd floor of Ulsan City Hall.

Visitors attending in Seoul will be admitted on a first-come, first-served basis up to 70 people, and those attending at Ulsan City Hall will be admitted up to 99 people on the same basis.

A museum official stated, "To mark the half-century since the discovery of the Daegok-ri Bangudae Petroglyphs, we are holding this international academic conference to shed light on the spatiality of the petroglyphs."