Gaesimsaji Five-story Stone Pagoda, Yecheon

Basic information

Designation

National Treasure No.353

Category

Sites & Pagodas

Era

고려시대

Designated year

2025

Location

예천군, 경상북도— 경북 예천군 예천읍 남본리 200-3번지

Coordinates

36.652033, 128.454780

This English description was machine-translated and may contain inaccuracies. Refer to the original Korean text for details.

Five-Story Stone Pagoda at Gaesimsa Temple Site, Yecheon. The Five-Story Stone Pagoda at the Gaesimsa Temple site in Yecheon is a Goryeo-period stone pagoda completed in 1011 (King Hyeonjong's 2nd year) bearing a 190-character inscription that clearly documents its construction date, process, and social context, making it a chronological standard for Korean stone pagodas. According to the inscription, construction began in 1010 and was completed on the 8th day of the 4th month of 1011, with the labor of 1,000 oxen, six divisions of military transport, and 10,000 monks and lay people combined. The double-tier structural base features twelve zodiac deity figures on the lower tier, eight classes of celestial beings on the upper tier, and vajra guardians on the first pagoda story — a unique iconographic program found nowhere else among Korean stone pagodas. The sculptural figures display distinctive clothing and attributes with high artistic refinement. As a representative Goryeo stone pagoda with outstanding decorative sculpture and a clearly documented construction history, it possesses exceptional historical, academic, and artistic value.

Location