Among the most popular treasures in the National Museum of Korea, these two Pensive Bodhisattvas are probably the greatest highlights. They are more than 1,400 years old, and both are National Treasures. They are also the only objects in the museum displayed in their own independent gallery, called the Room of Quiet Contemplation . The room was designed by Korean architect Choi Wook. You first walk from a bright corridor into a dark passage. While your eyes adjust to the darkness, your mind also begins to calm down. Then you turn right and enter a large hall, but there are only two statues inside. Because there is so much empty space around them, you naturally focus on the statues. The floor rises slightly toward them, at an angle of about one degree. You may not notice it with your eyes, but your body can sense it, so you naturally walk more slowly. Above you are approximately 21,000 aluminium rods. Their different lengths and angles make the ceiling appear tilted and endless, al...
The Metasequoia is also called the dawn redwood in English. This tree is special because people once knew it only from fossils. For a long time, scientists thought it was extinct. But in the 1940s, living Metasequoia trees were found in China. This discovery surprised everyone. The tree earned the name “living fossil.”
Its scientific name is Metasequoia glyptostroboides. Only one living species exists in the Metasequoia group today. It is a conifer but different from most pine trees. It is a deciduous conifer. Its leaves look like needles, but they fall off in winter. The leaves are bright green in spring and summer. They turn brown or reddish-brown in autumn before they drop. The tree looks very different in each season.
Metasequoia grows tall quickly. It likes sunny places with moist but well-drained soil. Young trees can grow 30 to 80 cm per year, sometimes up to 1 meter in very good conditions. Because it grows fast and becomes large, it absorbs a lot of carbon dioxide — some reports say 5 to 10 times more than pine trees, though this depends on age, size, and environment.
In Chinese characters, it is called 水杉 (suishān), meaning “water cedar” or a cedar-like tree that grows well near water. It prefers wet soil but needs good drainage. It likes water but does not want to stand in it like a fish.
The Birth of a Beautiful Tree-Lined Road
One of the best places to see Metasequoia in Korea is the Damyang Metasequoia Road in Damyang-eup, Damyang-gun, Jeollanam-do. Tall trees (10–20 m high) stand on both sides of the road. They form a long green tunnel about 8.5 km long. It feels like a natural corridor or a green cathedral.
The road started in 1972 as part of a national roadside tree project. The government planted 3–4 year old Metasequoia saplings along National Road 24. At first, they were small trees for shade and better scenery. Over decades, they grew tall and strong. The ordinary road became a famous beautiful green tunnel. It was not planned as a tourist spot, but time and growth made it one of Korea’s most beautiful tree-lined roads.