The burial custom in the world: The Neung of The Silla's King Michu

The Neung of The Silla’s King Michu

King Michu’s neung in Gyeongsangbuk-do gyeongju-city whangnam-dong is a tomb of Michu who was the 13th king of the Silla. As the 8th descendent of Kim Alji, the originator of Kim family, he became the King of the Silla for the first time among the Kim family. He became the King in 262, and for 23 years of his reign, he fought back against the invasions of Baekje and encouraged agriculture. After the King Michu was demised, the name of the neung became a the great neung, and it was protected by the walls around it. In front of the tomb, there is Soonghyejeon-Hall to hold a religious service for the king, and it seems that its internal structure is wooden chamber tomb with stone mound. Old tomb shows that in Silla, people thought that burial is important. At the time, people selected an auspicious day according to the theory of divination based on topography and buried.

As the 12th king, Cheomhae had no son, he handed the throne to Kim. If King Cheomhae had a son, he would not have handed a throne over to Kim. It can be seen how important it is to have descendents in life. After King Michu succeeded the throne from the King Cheomhae, many kings were born up to 38th kings. Gyeongju Kim family has many birthplaces of the first ancestor, and the descendants were very prosperous.