Seosamneung Royal Tombs
서삼릉
Three royal tombs and two princely graves, and beside them the royal placenta chambers gathered here from all over the country under Japanese rule — where what became of them can be seen at once.
Language
Place information
- Korean name
- 서삼릉
- Address
- 233-126 Seosamneung-gil, Deogyang-gu, Goyang, Gyeonggi-do
- Opening hours
- Feb–May, Sep–Oct 09:00–18:00 (last entry 17:00) Jun–Aug 09:00–18:30 (last entry 17:30) Jan, Nov–Dec 09:00–17:30 (last entry 16:30)
- Closed
- Every Mon (open if it falls on a public holiday; closed the next weekday instead)
- Time needed
- 2 hours
- Admission
- ₩1,000
- Operated by
- Royal Palaces and Tombs Centre
Prices
| Adult(domestic visitors 25-64, foreign visitors 19-64) | ₩1,000 |
|---|---|
| Admission(Korean nationals aged 24 and under or 65 and over (photo ID required)) | Free |
| Admission(foreign visitors aged 18 and under or 65 and over) | Free |
| Admission(visitors wearing hanbok, including modernised hanbok) | Free |
| the last Wednesday of each month, Culture Day | Free |
| Group(groups of ten or more) | ₩800 |
Source: Royal Palaces and Tombs Centre — royal tomb admission ·
What to see
Huireung
Huireung is the tomb of Queen Janggyeong of the Yun clan, second queen of Jungjong, the 11th king of Joseon. When she died in 1515 the tomb was laid out on the western slope of today’s Heonilleung, and in 1537 it was moved here. The mound has no screen of stone panels, only a balustrade, and around it stand civil and military figures, a stone lantern, an offering table, stone pillars and stone sheep and tigers.
궁능유적본부 (royal.khs.go.kr, KOGL Type 1)
Yereung
Yereung is the tomb of Cheoljong, the 25th king of Joseon, and Empress Cheorin of the Kim clan. It takes the twin-mound form, the two mounds set side by side inside one curved screen wall, and it is the last Joseon royal tomb built to the Gukjo sangnye boppyeon compiled in Yeongjo’s reign. Its civil and military figures, stone horses, stone lantern and some of its sheep and tigers came from Jungjong’s former Jeongneung: they were buried when that tomb was moved to today’s Gangnam, then dug up again and recut for use here.
궁능유적본부 (royal.khs.go.kr, KOGL Type 1)
Uiryeongwon and Hyochangwon
Uiryeongwon is the grave of Prince Uiso, eldest son of Jangjo — Prince Sado, raised to emperor posthumously — and grandson of Yeongjo, the 21st king of Joseon. Hyochangwon is the grave of Crown Prince Munhyo, eldest son of Jeongjo, the 22nd. Uiryeongwon was moved here in 1949 from Bukahyeon-dong in Seodaemun-gu, Seoul, and Hyochangwon in 1944 from Hyochang Park in Yongsan-gu. Seen from the front, Hyochangwon is the nearer of the two and Uiryeongwon the further.
궁능유적본부 (royal.khs.go.kr, KOGL Type 1)
Hyoreung
Hyoreung is the tomb of Injong, the 12th king of Joseon, and his queen Inseong of the Bak clan. It takes the twin-mound form, the two mounds set side by side inside one curved screen wall and joined by a single balustrade. Only Injong’s mound carries a screen of stone panels, and it was not there when the tomb was built: it was added after the queen’s mound was raised in 1578.
궁능유적본부 (royal.khs.go.kr, KOGL Type 1)
Placenta Chamber Precinct
The placenta-chamber precinct holds the placenta chambers themselves along with the graves of princes, princesses and royal consorts, and Hoemyo. The chambers were brought inside Seosamneung from all over the country in 1928 and 1929, and the graves were moved here between the 1930s and the 1970s. It took its present form in 1969, when Hoemyo — the grave of the deposed Queen Yun, mother of Yeonsangun — was moved here.
궁능유적본부 (royal.khs.go.kr, KOGL Type 1)
Huireung selected
Nearby
Seooreung Royal Tombs
Five royal tombs and three lesser graves in one wood. Sukjong lies here with two of his queens, and so does Jang Hui-bin — one reign’s cast inside a single set of walls. It opens at 07:00 under the early-admission rule.
Paju Samneung Royal Tombs
Gongneung, Sulleung and Yeongneung in one precinct. Of the three, only Sulleung was built to the full royal-tomb form — its occupant alone died holding the rank of queen.
Olleung Royal Tomb
The tomb of Queen Dangyeong, Jungjong’s first queen. She was buried as a deposed consort and restored some 180 years later, at which point the grave became a royal tomb. It is one of the few Joseon royal tombs that charges no admission.
World Cup Park
A park made out of the Nanjido landfill, which took Seoul's rubbish for fifteen years from 1978. It opened in 2002 and is divided into five areas, two of which are hills built from the waste itself.
Stories about this place
- Gyeonggi's Twelve Joseon Royal Tomb Precincts, Compared: The Five That Differ on Price or Opening Time
All twelve Joseon royal tomb precincts in Gyeonggi Province, compared on how many tombs each one gathers and on what can only be seen there. Unlike Seoul's five, admission and opening hours vary here, and five of the twelve differ from the other seven.
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