Korea recognizes 16th-century temple hall as cultural Treasure
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The Korea Heritage Service officially designated the Daegwangjeon Hall at Sinansa Temple in Geumsan County, South Chungcheong Province, as a Treasure, a status recognizing significant cultural value.
The hall serves as the temple’s main worship space, and while exact construction dates remained unknown, evidence now confirms its origins in the 16th century. Workers discovered a 1638 inscription during repairs in 2007, and subsequent tree-ring dating in 2023 of wooden beams revealed some dated to 1583.
The Daegwangjeon Hall stands out for its unique architectural style. It combines a “dapo” bracket system, where brackets support the roof both on and between columns, with a gable roof, which slopes only at the front and back. The Heritage Service noted that using brackets on the sides and corners of a gable-roofed building was a characteristic of construction during the 16th century. The hall underwent a renovation in 1840, but the designation acknowledges its original 16th-century construction and design.
The Treasure designation places the hall among South Korea’s important state-designated heritage sites, ranking just below the level of National Treasure.
