Stone Bridge at Gomakcheon Stream, Hampyeong

The Stone Bridge at Gomakcheon Stream in Hampyeong is, as its name suggests, a stone bridge over the Gomakcheon Stream. It is also known as Ttokdari or Tteokdari Bridge. According to a legend, an eminent monk named Gomak used supernatural power to build the bridge at Beopcheonsa Temple on Seungdalsan Mountain in Muan in 1273. Radiocarbon dating of a wooden post discovered at the bridge site during repair work in 2001 revealed that the bridge was built sometime between the late Goryeo and early Joseon period. This makes it the oldest extant stone bridge in Korea whose construction date is known with some degree of certitude. Although bridges usually had a wooden framework during this period, this bridge was built by elaborately cutting and trimming stones and joining them together as if to create a wooden structure. This well-constructed stone bridge endured the fierce torrents of the Gomakcheon Stream for about 700 years, but it was repaired so badly during the colonial period that the balance and harmony of the original structure were lost completely. Located on the border between Hampyeong-gun and Naju-si, formerly a strategically important transportation hub, the bridge was a symbol of the waterway until the 1910s for vessels carrying as much as 100 seok (1seok = 180 liters) of rice. There are four stone steles standing on the hilltop near the bridge, witnesses of the area's former prosperity.

Source: Korea Heritage Service signboard ↗ · collected 2026-10-08