A History of Korea (16 page)

SILLA’S “WINNING” FEATURES

The modern appropriation of the
Hwarang
myths served as a capstone to the centuries-long drive to see something spectacular in Silla’s conquest of the other two kingdoms. But it can be argued
that these attempts to incorporate the unification struggle into a grand narrative of national unity did a disservice. In
Chapter 1
we noted that this traditional perspective faced a backlash from many modern observers, especially those who considered Kogury
to have been a truer representative of ancient Korean civilization. A further historical disservice lay in the fact that the glorification of Silla’s unification heroics tended to overshadow other intriguing features of this kingdom. Two overlooked facets of Silla in particular and, by extension, of ancient Korea as a whole, come to mind, both highlighted by their association with Queen S
nd
k.

The first theme is the impressive technological and cultural advancement of the ancient societies on the peninsula. We have noted already the Kogury
achievements in this regard, and Paekche also demonstrated these advances, particularly in the realms of architecture and metallurgy. Silla, too, reached notable heights, with stunning examples still readily visible today in the “museum without walls,” the city of Ky
ngju, Silla’s capital. These include enormous and immaculate bronze bells, the pagodas in the showcase Buddhist temple of “Pulguksa,” the intricately crafted stone carvings of ancient spirits and legends that grace the numerous tombs and other artifacts, and the extraordinary “S
kkuram” Buddhist grotto that achieved perfection in the unity of art and spirituality. Perhaps the most stunning remnant of ancient Ky
ngju is the eight-meter high “Ch
ms
ngdae” astronomical observatory that visitors encounter literally on the side of the road. This observatory’s precise date of origin is unclear, but all of the historical accounts about it, beginning with the
History of the Three Kingdoms
, point toward the reign of Queen S
nd
k. In addition to the historical records, another feature of this observatory also seems to support this perspective: it is comprised of twenty seven layers of stone, and Queen S
nd
k was the twenty-seventh monarch of Silla. Before dismissing this as a coincidence, one has to consider the precision in the construction of this observatory. The twenty seven layers are divided by a square-shaped entrance mid-way up the structure, which takes up three layers. That leaves twelve layers above and below the entrance, in reference to the twelve months of the lunar year. Even the number of stones is roughly 365,
the number of days in the year. Given its role in setting the agricultural calendar, forecasting the weather, and, presumably, predicting natural disasters, astronomy (or astrology) occupied a central place in the economic life of the people and, hence, also in maintaining the aura of legitimacy surrounding ancient monarchs.