Two days ago in the Gangjin Shinmun there was a little write-up about Gangjin-eup's old town wall (강진읍성). There is a renewed interest among some, apparently, after the recent destruction of Seoul's Namdaemun. Gangjin's gates are gone, and the fortress walls are pretty much gone, too. If you walk through town, though, you'll see allusions to the old wall. If you head northwest from the bus terminal, for instance, you'll see several of the shops have 서문 (west gate) in their names. And if you hike on Boeunsan mountain, you'll come across a placard marking the spot of 강진읍성. The first few times I passed it I didn't see any trace of a wall, but upon closer inspection I found a small ridge that runs parallel to the hiking trail for a tiny stretch. Because of the trail, the wall, and the natural contours of the hill, that area resembles a stretch of terraced land. Under the trees and overgrowth there is a line of stacked stones running up the hill, confirming my suspicion.
This bump is how Gangjin-eupseong appears today.
According to the placard, some estimate Gangjin's wall was built in 1457. In 1894 the eastern, southern, and western gates were destroyed by fire.
I'm sure the article has more details, but I don't understand much of it. I'll have to sift through it later. Of course it's completely unfeasable and impossible to restore the gates or the wall, but I would like to see somebody erect placards marking where the gates once stood. I was quite surprised last year to find no mention at all of the gates or the wall in town, save for the collection of 서문 businesses behind the bus terminal.
강진읍성 is one of a ton of fortresses in Jeollanam-do, and one of at least 5 in Gangjin county. Besides 강진읍성 there's Suinsanseong, Manhosanseong in Maryang-myeon,
1 comment:
Actually, Jindo itself has 3 fortresses. One is still completely intact, including the town inside (which is still occupied), which is pretty awesome. There's another one, that is absolutely massive (like, 80 acres massive), that only has the walls and foundations left, but it's still pretty cool. The one in Eup only has one section left, but it's still pretty neat. It's up on a hill, so you can get a pretty good view of the town.
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