The Hurung Royal Tomb, also known as Huneung Royal Tomb, is a 15th-century

mausoleum A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or people. A mausoleum without the person's remains is called a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be consid ...

located in Ryongjong Village,

Kaepung County Kaep'ung County was a county in North Hwanghae Province, North Korea. Formerly part of the Kaesong urban area, the county was merged with North Hwanghae when Kaesong was demoted in 2003. The area is the site of the royal tombs of King Kongmin and ...

near

Kaesong Kaesong (, ) is a special city in the southern part of North Korea (formerly in North Hwanghae Province), and the capital of Korea during the Taebong kingdom and subsequent Goryeo dynasty. The city is near the Kaesong Industrial Region close t ...

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu River, Y ...

. The site consists of two separate burial mounds, which contain the remains of Jeongjong, the second king of the

Joseon dynasty Joseon (; ; Middle Korean: 됴ᇢ〯션〮 Dyǒw syéon or 됴ᇢ〯션〯 Dyǒw syěon), officially the Great Joseon (; ), was the last dynastic kingdom of Korea, lasting just over 500 years. It was founded by Yi Seong-gye in July 1392 and re ...

and son of its founder Taejo, as well as the body of his wife,

Queen Jeongan Queen Jeongan (정안왕후 김씨, 22 January 1355 – 2 August 1412) or Queen Anjeong (안정왕후), of the Gyeongju Kim clan, was a posthumous name bestowed to the wife and queen consort of Yi Gyeong, King Jeongjong; the second monarch of the ...

. Construction on the tombs began after Queen Jeongan's death in 1412, and was only completed after Jeongjong himself died in 1419. Both tombs consist of a burial mound ringed with a carved granite base; they are surrounded by statues of the twelve zodiac animals. The "

spirit road A spirit way () is the ornate road leading to a Chinese tomb of a major dignitary. The term is also sometimes translated as spirit road, spirit path or sacred way. The spirit way is lined on both sides by a succession of statues, pillars, and ...

" up to the tombs is lined with statues of military officers and

Confucian Confucianism, also known as Ruism or Ru classicism, is a system of thought and behavior originating in ancient China. Variously described as tradition, a philosophy, a Religious Confucianism, religion, a humanistic or rationalistic religion, ...

officials. Despite being the tomb of a Joseon monarch, the site was excluded from the

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...

" Royal Tombs of the Joseon Dynasty" as it is located in North Korea. It is one of two royal tombs from that dynasty in the country; the other, Cherung, belongs to

Queen Sinui Queen Sinui (Hangul: 신의왕후 한씨, Hanja: 神懿王后韓氏; 1337 – 21 October 1391), of the Cheongju Han clan, was the first wife of Yi Seong-gye (future Taejo of Joseon). She was the mother of King Jeongjong and King Taejong. She ...

, wife of the dynasty's founder Taejo, who died before her husband became king and moved the capital to

Hanseong Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 of ...

(present-day

Seoul Seoul (; ; ), officially known as the Seoul Special City, is the capital and largest metropolis of South Korea.Before 1972, Seoul was the ''de jure'' capital of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) as stated iArticle 103 ...

References

* http://www.encyber.com/search_w/ctdetail.php?gs=ws&gd=&cd=&d=&k=&inqr=&indme=&p=1&q=%C8%C4%B8%AA&masterno=882908&contentno=882908 * https://web.archive.org/web/20110609215651/http://www.kcna.co.jp/item/2000/200006/news06/21.htm * http://blog.joins.com/media/folderListComment.asp?uid=dangye&list_id=10564735&folder=26&list_idx=10564735&rep_open=1&ret_url=http%3A%2F%2Fblog.joins.com%2Fmedia%2FfolderListSlide.asp%3Fuid%3Ddangye%26folder%3D26%26list_id%3D10564735 {{coord, 37, 50, 1, N, 126, 32, 3, E, region:KR_type:landmark, display=title Kaesong Archaeological sites in North Korea