Haotaiwang Stele 好太王碑

What might be the most archeologically significant artifact in the ruins of the Korguryo Kingdom maybe be found in this archeological park. The Haotaiwang Stele is one of the most significant finds that reveals a lot about the history of the Korguryo Kingdom. As the name implies, the Haotaiwang Stele is a stele dedicated to the Haotaiwang 好太王 or Good King. It seems that the Haotaiwang was so beloved by his subjects that a stele was erected for him when he died. The Haotaiwang in this case as name Tan De 谈德 and was the 19th king of the Korguryo Kingdom. This stele was built in the year 414 AD. That is a very long time ago. The rock from which the stele was carved from was taken from the material from Ji’an along the banks of the Yalu River.

My guide continued to talk about the stele and all its merits but couldn’t absorb all of that Chinese, most of which just went out the other ear. What I did understand though was, that there will be no taking photos inside the pavillion. The stele itself used to be exposed to the elements, and it surprisingly lasted almost two thousand years until a weather controlled pavillion was built over it to prevent further deterioration. It was frustrating not be allowed take close up photos of the stele and I could only stand outside the pavillion and take photos from the door. I don’t see why you can’t take photos since it is out in the open anyway. As for what the stele says? There were Chinese incriptions on that stele which document much of the history of the Koguryo Kingdom, this also help to nail down much of the known history and locations of certain historical sites. At that time the Korguryo culture still used Chinese characters to write, a lot of the writing is still legible but it will take a scholar to be able to understand what it says. You can think of it as something like a Chinese Rosetta Stone of some sort as it helped decipher much of the history of Northeast China.

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