Mireuksa Temple Site

Mireuksa was founded by King Mu of Baekje early in the seventh century and was the largest temple the kingdom built - an unusual plan of three courtyards side by side, each with its own pagoda and hall, laid out over a wide flat field at Iksan. Nothing above ground survives except the western pagoda, and that only partly: a nine-storey stone tower of which six storeys remained, the oldest and largest stone pagoda in Korea, significant because it copies wooden construction in stone and so records what Baekje timber pagodas looked like. A twenty-year dismantling and reassembly finished in 2018, and it now stands restored to six storeys rather than speculatively completed - a decision worth knowing about, since visitors often ask why it is not finished. In 2009 a gilt-bronze reliquary with a dated inscription was found inside, naming the donor and the year, which reset several arguments about the site. A large free museum sits alongside.

The main sights

• The western stone pagoda - reassembled to six storeys, not completed.
• The three-courtyard plan - foundations laid out across the field.
• The reconstructed eastern pagoda - built new in the 1990s for comparison.
• The museum - the reliquary find and the restoration record.

When to go

April to June and September to November. The site is open field with no shade, so summer midday is hard. It is rarely crowded.

Things to know

This is foundations and one pagoda on a wide lawn - there is no temple to walk through. The modern eastern pagoda is widely disliked. Both site and museum are free.

Nearby

Wanggung-ri is a few kilometres away; Iksan city is 10 km.

Key facts