Mongchontoseong Fortress

Before Seoul was Seoul it was Hanseong, capital of Baekje, one of the Three Kingdoms, from around the first century BCE until the fifth century CE, and Mongchontoseong is one of the two surviving earthwork fortresses from that period inside the modern city. What remains is the rampart itself: a bank of packed earth about 2.7 kilometres long and six to seven metres high following the natural contours, once topped by a palisade, now grassed over and reading as a low rolling ridge, with a moat line on part of it and wooden stakes reconstructed at one section to show the defences. Excavation has produced pottery, roof tiles, Chinese ceramics and wooden fittings, and some of it is displayed in situ under cover. When Seoul built the Olympic Park for 1988 the fortress was incorporated into it rather than levelled - the running stage of the modern pentathlon was held on it - so the earthworks now sit among sculpture, lawns and sports halls - the Hanseong Baekje Museum at the edge explains the whole thing properly and is worth doing first.

Highlights

• The earth ramparts - the grassed bank following the contours.
• The reconstructed stakes - the defensive line at one section.
• The excavation displays - finds shown in place under cover.
• The Olympic Park setting - earthworks among lawns and sculpture.

When to go

April to June and October to November; the park is at its best then and the walk round the ramparts is pleasant. The museum is indoors and works in any weather.

Practical notes

There is nothing standing - this is grassed earthwork, and without the museum first it reads as landscaping. Signage on the ramparts is limited. The park is busy at weekends.

Nearby

The Hanseong Baekje Museum is at the park edge; Lotte World Tower and Seokchon lake are west.

Key facts