Once Upon a Roof: Vanished Korean Architecture

Roof tile end
Korea, Three Kingdoms, Baekje, Sabi period (538–660)
Excavated from the Mireuksa temple site, Iksan, North Jeolla province Earthenware
Diam: 13 cm
Iksan National Museum, mireuk 9760
© Iksan National Museum

This round roof tile end is adorned with a molded lotus design. The central circular pod contains seven lotus seeds, and the interior of each petal is decorated with a sprouting seed. The lotus—a symbol of purity in Buddhism—was the most popular motif across both secular and religious architecture during the Three Kingdoms period.

Tile with temple in a landscape
Korea, Three Kingdoms, Baekje, Sabi period (538–660)
Excavated from the temple site at at Oe-ri, Buyeo, South Chungcheong province
Earthenware
H x W x D : 29 .3 x 29 .1 x 4.5 cm
National Museum of Korea, bon 13972
© Buyeo National Museum

This clay tile is decorated with a landscape scene featuring a boulder-filled stream and groups of three-peaked mountains covered in pine trees. A closer examination of the lower central mountain reveals a building with two standing ridge ornaments on its roof. This pictorial evidence suggests the use of roof ridge ornaments in their time. If you look in the lower right-hand corner, you can see a priest walking toward the retreat. This tile also represents an early stage of landscape representation in Korea.

Rafter end tile
Korea, Three Kingdoms, Baekje, Sabi period (538–660)
Excavated from the Mireuksa temple site, Iksan, North Jeolla province
Earthenware with green glaze
Diam: 15 cm
Iksan National Museum, mireuk 6357
© Iksan National Museum

This rafter end tile is adorned with seven petals surrounding the central pod along with seven lotus seeds, which is a much less common design than eight-petal versions. In addition to their aesthetic qualities, rafter end tiles would have been nailed to the ends of wooden rafters through the square holes in their centers to protect the timber from decay. Unearthed at the site of a Baekje temple founded during the reign of King Mu (reigned 600–41), it represents the earliest use of green glaze in the production of roof tiles in Korea.

Brick with dragon, buildings, and landscape
Korea, Unified Silla kingdom (676–935)
Excavated from Jungsan-dong, Ulsan
Earthenware
H x W x D: 6.9 x 15.8 x 11.6 cm
Gyeongju National Museum, gyeongji 4655
© Gyeongju National Museum

This clay brick renders structural elements of ancient wooden buildings in great detail. The front façades of the buildings feature columns, brackets, and a tiled roof. Roof ridge ornaments are also clearly visible at both ends of the main peak. The buildings float on clouds against a distant landscape that is represented by horizontal lines and triangular mountains, suggesting the structures may be heavenly palaces in a Buddhist paradise.

Roof tile end
Korea, Three Kingdoms, Baekje, Sabi period (538–660)
Excavated from the Mireuksa temple site, Iksan, North Jeolla province Earthenware
Diam x L: 14 x 39.4 cm
Iksan National Museum, mireuk 5916
© Iksan National Museum

Round roof tile ends like the one seen here capped the end of convex roof tiles at the eaves above the rafters, where they were intended to direct water off the roof. A notable feature of this roof tile end is the attached convex roof tile that has survived intact. Excavated at the site of a Baekje temple called Mireuksa, this type of roof tile end with six-petal lotus design was found in the greatest number, suggesting they were produced at the time of the temple's foundation.