The Secret of the Two Stone Tomb Steles

[Narration]
The two stone tomb steles belonged to King Muryeong and his queen. A tomb stele is a commemorative tablet inscribed with the interred person’s biography, including their name and date of birth. Upon discovery of these steles, the Royal Tomb of King Muryeong became the only royal tomb from the Three Kingdoms Period to be conclusively identifiable. An interesting note is inscribed on the back of the plaque.

[Female Student]
What does it say?

[Narration]
It says that the king bought the land for the tomb from the god of the earth.

[Female Student]
The king bought the land for his tomb from god? That’s so strange!

[Narration]
Yes. The people of Baekje believed that divine beings dwelled in natural phenomena, such as the earth. The act of ‘buying’ land represented the asking of permission from the god of the earth and ensured the protection of the person entombed. Approximately 90 ancient Chinese coins were found on top of the tomb stele, and they are believed to have been payment to the god of the earth.

[Female Student]
That’s really interesting. Which of the two stone tomb steles belonged to King Muryeong?

[Narration]
The one on the right was King Muryeong’s and the other belonged to the queen.

[Female Student]
I see. What else is written on the stele?

[Narration]
I will tell you about the king’s first. It says that King Muryeong died in 523 at the age of 62. The queen’s stele says that the queen died of old age in 526 and that King Muryeong purchased the land from the god of the earth.

The records on both stone steles are standard data for comparative studies of the relics from other regions. Furthermore, they established an absolute time frame, against which the histories of Baekje, Silla, Goguryeo and even East Asia could be measured. This is one of the many reasons why the Royal Tomb of King Muryeong has been accorded such value.