Boseong Joseong-ri Site to Hold Academic Conference on 'National Heritage Designation'

Promotion of UNESCO Cultural Heritage Registration for Jeonnam Mahan Relics

Boseong-gun, Jeollanam-do announced on the 9th that it will hold an academic conference on the 12th at Joseong-myeon Administrative Welfare Center, in collaboration with the Korea Cultural Heritage Research Institute (Director Lee Young-cheol), under the theme "The Present and Future of Boseong Joseong-ri Site," to promote the designation of the 'Boseong Joseong-ri Site' as a national heritage.

The academic conference is significant as it will be the first public unveiling of the 'Boseong Joseong-ri Site,' where large wooden ritual objects (daemok) believed to connect humans and gods, as well as post holes (jugong) presumed to be entrance posts, were discovered.

Archaeological site excavation in Joseong-ri, Boseong-gun. Provided by Boseong-gun

Through this national heritage designation academic conference, conducted as part of proactive administration, Boseong-gun and the Korea Cultural Heritage Research Institute plan to convey the unique value of the 'Boseong Joseong-ri Site,' which is distinct from other sites distributed in the eastern region of Jeollanam-do, and establish directions for its preservation and management.

Additionally, they aim to confirm the value of the site as a complex relic related to daily life, defense, tombs, and water facilities, raise academic and local community interest in the shamanistic characteristics of Mahan culture, and promote the registration of Mahan sites distributed in Jeollanam-do as UNESCO World Cultural Heritage.

The conference is open to anyone who completes on-site registration and will consist of six thematic presentations followed by a comprehensive discussion.

In the keynote presentations, the excavation results and significance of the Joseong-ri site will be reviewed by Moon Ye-eun of the Korea Cultural Heritage Research Institute, and archaeological evidence of the Mahan small states in the eastern Jeollanam-do region will be presented by Lee Dong-hee from Inje University. Subsequently, through a comparative review with Japanese settlement sites located on hills from a similar period (presented by Teramae Naoto of Komazawa University, Japan), the characteristics of the Joseong-ri site will be examined, and the rituals of Mahan will be reconstructed based on the Joseong-ri site by Han Ok-min of the Korea Cultural Heritage Research Institute.

Alongside this, a comparative analysis of the special laws concerning the maintenance of historical and cultural zones by Korean and Japanese scholars, the current status and utilization plans of Mahan heritage in Boseong (presented by Lee Beom-gi of the World Cultural Heritage Research Foundation), and the preservation and utilization of Japanese settlement sites (presented by Kawai Noriyuki of the Aoyakamichi Historical Park, Tottori Prefecture, Japan) will be conducted to explore preservation and utilization strategies.

After the thematic presentations, a comprehensive discussion will be held, chaired by Professor Kwon Oh-young of Seoul National University.

A county official stated, "We are excavating the Joseong-ri Mahan site as part of an important historical and cultural site excavation project," adding, "We will uncover the value of the Joseong-ri site, share the results, and lay the groundwork for its registration as a UNESCO World Cultural Heritage."