In late June 2009, Korea's royal tombs of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) were officially registered as UNESCO World Heritage sites. The UNESCO website explained the uniqueness of the royal tombs, whose surrounding areas are "typically protected by a hill facing south toward water and layers of mountain ridges in the distance." Each royal tomb is also decorated with green gardens featuring pine trees arranged like a folding screen, a design unknown in any other nation in Asia. The tomb statues, in the shape of warriors, tigers, horses and other features, further evidences the art history of the 500-year-long Joseon Dynasty.

UNESCO registered Korea’s Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes as U.N.-protected heritage sites on June 27, 2007, reflecting the value of these nature preservation areas on Korea's largest, southernmost resort island. This is the first time for a Korean natural heritage site to be added to the World Heritage List; it already had World Cultural Heritage items designated by UNESCO.

Located 130 kilometers south of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Volcanic Island and Lava Tubes are comprised of a shield volcano, which is about 1.2 million years old, and which rises to 1,950 meters above sea level at Hallasan (Mount Halla), South Korea's highest peak, formed 25 thousand years ago. The site covers 18,846 hectares, over 10 percent of Jejudo (Jeju Island), and is covered with dark-brown volcanic rock and volcanic soil. The volcanic activities of Jeju Island started about 1.2 million years ago.

In 2000, dolmen sites in the counties of Gochang, Jeollabuk-do; Hwasun, Jeollanam-do; and Ganghwa Island, Gyeonggi-do (Gyeonggi Province), and the Gyeongju Historic Area were added to the list of UNESCO World Cultural Heritage.


Dolmens, or "goindol" in Korean, are large stone monuments made as burial site markers by ancient peoples, mostly going back to the Neolithic age. Dolmens are found in many parts of the world, but Korea has the greatest number in the world, with about 30,000 of the tombs (including about 3,000 found in North Korea) or about 50 percent of the total number of dolmens in the world.

Gyeongju in Gyeongsangbuk-do (North Gyeongsang Province) was the capital of the Silla Kingdom for a thousand years and the area is called a "Museum without Walls" because of the wealth of historical properties there.

In 1997, Changdeokgung Palace in Seoul and Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon were entered on the list. Changdeokgung Palace, also known as Biwon (meaning the Secret Garden) in Korea, is one of Korea's five main palaces built during the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910). This palace was the favored residence among the many kings of the Joseon Dynasty for its treasured, beautiful secret garden of Biwon, which shows a wonderful harmony between nature and palace buildings.


Hwaseong Fortress in Suwon was built by King Jeongjo, the 22nd King of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), in 1796 as an act of filial devotion to his parents and to strengthen his power, eradicate party strife and fortify the area south of the capital. After building Suwon, the king moved the grave of his father Sadoseja (Crown Prince, 1735-1762) to the fortress in his honor and made pilgrimage to the new city. Honoring the engineering techniques and the great efforts of King Jeongjo, who also encouraged commerce, manufacturing, architecture, engineering and other practical studies, UNESCO designated Hwaseong Fortress a World Cultural Heritage in 1997.

In 1995, UNESCO added to its list Bulguksa Temple and Seokguram Grotto, both in Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do (North Gyeongsang Province); Haeinsa Temple Janggyeongpanjeon, the depository for the Tripitaka Koreana Buddhist scripture Woodblocks in Gyeongsangnam-do (South Gyeongsang Province); and Jongmyo, the Royal Ancestral Shrine in Seoul.

Supervised by Chief Minister Kim Dae-seong (701-774) of the Silla Dynasty (57 B.C.–AD 935), Bulguksa was constructed for public worship and Seokguram for the private worship of the king over a 23-year period beginning in 751. Bulguksa Temple houses some of Korea’s precious treasures -- the Seokgatap (Pagoda of the Historic Buddha) and Dabotap (Pagoda of Many Treasures) as well as Cheong-un-gyo (Blue Cloud Bridge), Baegun-gyo (White Cloud Bridge) and Chilbogyo (Bridge of Seven Treasures). Seokguram Grotto is an artificially created stone cavern featuring a large seated Buddha surrounded by 38 Bodhisattvas. Both Bulguksa and Seokguram represent a combination of Silla's knowledge of architecture, math, geometry, physics, religion and art into an organic whole and is one of Korea's greatest Buddhist masterpieces.

Janggyeongpanjeon, two storage halls at Haeinsa Temple, are the repositories for the Tripitaka Koreana, called Palman Daejanggyeong in Korean, a collection of Buddhist scriptures carved onto 81,340 wooden printing blocks in the 13th century during the Goryeo Dynasty (A.D. 918-1392). The Tripitaka Koreana is Korea's 32nd national treasure and the entire depository for Tripitaka Koreana in Haeinsa (temple) was designated as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1995.

Jongmyo, the Royal Ancestral Shrine, constructed in 1395, three years after the beginning of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910) holds the spirit tablets of its kings and queens. The elaborate memorial rites and the music that accompanies them, called Jongmyojerye-ak (also written as jongmyo jeryeak), were designated as Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO.

UNESCO in 1997 initiated a Memory of the World Register for the purpose of preserving and disseminating the documentary heritage of the world that is in danger of being lost forever. To this registry, in 1997, UNESCO registered two Korean items – Hunminjeong-eum (Proper Phonetics to Instruct the People) and Joseon Wangjosillok (Annals of the Joseon Dynasty).

Hunminjeong-eum, meaning "Correct Sounds to Instruct the People," is Korea's first instruction book on Hangeul, Korea’s unique writing system. It was published in 1446 by King Sejong the Great (1397-1450), the fourth king of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910), who also created and promulgated the new Korean alphabet characters through this book.

In 2001, UNESCO added to its list Buljo Jikji-simche-yojeol (Selected Sermons of Buddhist Sages and Seon Masters) and Seungjeongwon Ilgi (Diaries of the Royal Secretariat).

Buljo Jikji-simche-yojeol, compiled in 1372 by the monk Baegun (1298-1374), contains the essentials of Seon (Zen) Buddhism. The key words of the title, "Jikji-simche" were taken from a famous phrase about attaining enlightenment through the practice of Seon.

The Seungjeongwon Ilgi was kept by the Seungjeongwon, the Royal Secretariat of the Joseon Dynasty. This is a detailed record of the daily events and official schedule of the court, from Joseon Dynasty's first king, Taejo (r. 1392-1398), to the 27th and last, Sunjong (r. 1907-1910).

The Goryeo Daejanggyeong, also known as the Tripitaka Koreana, is the world's most comprehensive and oldest intact version of the Buddhist canon in Chinese script, with no known errors in all 52,382,960 characters, which are organized in over 1,496 titles and 6,568 volumes. The historic value of the Tripitaka Koreana comes from its complete and accurate extant collection of Buddhist treatises, laws, and scriptures.

The Uigwe is a collection of Royal Protocols for the 500-year-long Joseon Dynasty, which shows a unique form of documentary heritage. Its comprehensive and systematic collection of writings and paintings provides a detailed account of the important ceremonies and rites of the Joseon court.  

UNESCO decided to add “Donguibogam" (pronounced as "Dong-uibogam" in Korean) or the "Principles and Practice of Eastern Medicine," in the UNESCO Memory of the World on July 31, 2009. The book, edited in 1613 by famous oriental medicine doctor and court physician Heo Jun (1539-1615), is a well-known traditional Korean medical encyclopedia on oriental medicine.

This book is regarded as a comprehensive medical encyclopedia on oriental medicine in East Asia and has been studied by both students of Oriental and Western medical science. It contains vast knowledge on how to diagnose and treat a number of diseases by using acupuncture, heat stimulation and other oriental medicinal treatments. The designation of Donguibogam, the first medical book added to the UNESCO heritage list, reflects the book's historic value, its importance as a source of medical knowledge, its contribution to society and world history and its cultural influence.

Dano, also called "Surinal" in Korean, is the oldest traditional holiday and it falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month. Among many Dano festivals across the country, Gangneung's Danoje Festival, the longest running festival in that east coast city since the time of the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392), is considered the most popular and historically rich traditional Korean festival.

Based on Korea’s religious traditions, including Confucianism, Shamanism, Buddhism and Taoism, the music, dance, literature, drama and handicrafts associated with the festival are of high artistic value and have extraordinary worth in that the festival has continued for approximately a thousand years and it reflects the history and life of commoners. Gangneung's Danoje Festival was designated intangible cultural asset number 13 by UNESCO in 2005.

UNESCO added five popular pansori songs – Simcheongga, Heungboga, Jeokbyeokga, Sugungga, and Chunhyangga -- to its list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2003. Pansori, a genre of musical story-telling, is performed by a vocalist with drum accompaniment. These popular solo epic songs, characterized by expressive singing, stylized speech, and mimetic gestures, embrace both aristocratic and folk culture. Performances can last up to eight hours, during which a male or female singer improvises on texts that combine rural Korean dialects with erudite literary expressions

Jongmyo-jerye is the ancestral memorial rite held for the repose of the spirits of the kings and queens of the Joseon period at Jongmyo (the Royal Ancestral Shrine), where their spirit tablets are enshrined. Jongmyo-jerye-ak is the royal ancestral rite performed during the rites. Accompanied by ritual dancing, Botaepyeong (Maintaining the Great Peace) was a suite of 11 pieces praising the civil achievements of the dynastic founders and Jeongdae-eop (Founding a Great Dynasty) was a suite of 15 pieces praising their military accomplishments. Jongmyo-jerye and Jongmyo-jerye-ak were selected as UNESCO's Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2001.