Sungnyong Hall is a shrine dedicated to the founding kings of ancient

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

located in the center of

Pyongyang Pyongyang () is the Capital city, capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is sometimes labeled as the "Capital of the Revolution" (). Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. Accordi ...

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 borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

. It is listed as National Treasure #6.

History

Sungnyong Hall was constructed in 1429 for the veneration of the mythical founder of the Korean nation, Tangun, and was originally called Tangun Hall. The shrine was enlarged under the Yi dynasty in 1725, as they sought to promote their legitimacy by emphasizing their connection to Tangun and promoting his veneration. The temple's name was changed to Sungnyong Hall after they expanded its dedication to include Tongmyong, the founder of the kingdom of

Koguryo Goguryeo (37 BC – 668 AD) (; ; Old Korean: Guryeo) also later known as Goryeo (; ; Middle Korean: 고ᇢ롕〮, ''kwòwlyéy''), was a Korean kingdom which was located on the northern and central parts of the Korea, Korean Peninsula an ...

. The temple was bombed by US forces during the

Korean War The Korean War (25 June 1950 – 27 July 1953) was an armed conflict on the Korean Peninsula fought between North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea; DPRK) and South Korea (Republic of Korea; ROK) and their allies. North Korea was s ...

, which destroyed the caretaker's quarters and shrine storehouses. Today, only the main hall, ceremonial altar, and entrance gate remain of the shrine.

References

Naenara

{{coord, 39, 1, 28, N, 125, 45, 4, E, display=title Buildings and structures in Pyongyang National Treasures of North Korea 1429 establishments in Asia Buildings and structures completed in 1429