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Changnyeong Monument (Korean: 창녕 신라 진흥왕 척경비; Hanja: 昌寧 新羅 眞興王 拓境碑) is a stone monument dated to the 6th century CE. Erected to commemorate the border expansion by King Jinheung of Silla, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea, it was designated as the 33rd National Treasure of Korea on December 20, 1962.
King Jinheung was a brilliant conqueror of the kingdom of Silla, which had been considered the weakest entity among the three kingdoms, including Baekje and Goguryeo. Under his reign, he successfully expanded the territory into the Han river basin.
In 555, Silla conquered Bitbeol Kaya (present-day Changnyeong region), one of the members of the Kaya confederacy, building this monument after a royal visit. At that time, Bitbeol Gaya was located at an important spot to provide Silla with strategic advantages in stepping further west. It is said the monument may have been built in the early 560s.
The monument has the common style of those made in the Silla Period. The front face of a natural stone was evenly trimmed and carved with inscriptions and is marked with a line around the edge. The front part of the epitaph is so worn that the inscription is no longer legible.
The stele stands close to 176 cm and measures 175 cm in width. The first half of the text describes the rule of King Jinheung since his accession, the territorial expansion and the administration of conquered peoples, followed by the statement of reasons for his visit to the Changnyeong area. The latter half mainly consists of the list of names of the aristocrats who accompanied the king on his visit and local dignitaries.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Monument in Changnyeong Commemorating the Border Expansion by King Jinheung of Silla”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.