December 08, 2011 12:01
North Korea has built copies of several ancient stone pagodas such as Dabo Pagoda and Seokga Pagoda in Gyeongju's Bulguk Temple. Photos of the fakes were spotted in a set of pictures unveiled by North Korea's official KCNA news agency on Tuesday detailing the construction of a heritage park near Pyongyang.
The photos also show a half-completed turtle boat resembling the armor-clad vessel used by Admiral Yi Sun-shin to defeat Japanese invaders in the 1500s.
A South Korean government official said, "It is rare to see North Korea, which claims to have inherited the traditions of the Koguryo Kingdom, mock up historical remains from the Shilla Kingdom."
The heritage park is among a welter of projects to mark the centenary of former North Korean leader Kim Il-sung next year. It is being built on a 530,000 sq.m plot of land and will be filled with mock-ups of historic structures and monuments.
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