Gyerim

A historic place where the legend goes that Alji, the ancestor of the Kim clan of Gyeongju, was born.

Gyerim, located just below Wolseong where the royal palace of Silla was once located, is a historic place where the legend of the birth of Kim Alji, the founder of the Kim clan of Gyeongju, hangs. If you follow the arrow sign in front of Cheomseongdae, said to be the oldest astronomical observatory in the East, in the Wolseong area of ​​the Gyeongju Historical Area, and walk a short distance towards Wolseong, you will come across a quiet forest with zelkova and other ancient trees on your right. This forest is Gyerim, where the legend of the birth of Kim Alji is passed down.

There is a birth legend about a chicken in Gyerim. In 65 AD during the reign of King Talhae of Silla (the 9th year of King Talhae), Prince Hogong was walking near Banwolseong Fortress when he heard a chicken crowing in the forest, which was then called Sirim. When he went in the direction of the sound, he found a glittering golden chest hanging from a tree branch. Prince Hogong saw a chicken crowing under the tree towards the golden chest, and realised that something was not right. He immediately reported the incident to the king. The king went to the forest himself, lowered the chest and opened it, from which came out a beautiful boy. He gave the boy the surname Kim and the name Alji, and the name of the forest also changed from Sirim to Gyerim.

In Gyerim, which was also used as the name of the kingdom of Silla, there is a monument within the temple grounds that was erected in 3 (the third year of the reign of King Sunjo) and records the birth of Kim Alji.