By AD520 the Silla kings ruled the south east of the Korean peninsula
Silla society was powerful and hierarchical. Its royalty was buried in these mounds
The City of Gyeongju was the capital of the Silla kingdom
It brought royal, religious and administrative affairs together in one place
Later kingdoms continued this tradition of centralised power
King Sejong developed the Korean alphabet in the 1440s
Important information had to be recorded in writing
Court historians had great authority and wrote their own versions of events
Many of these records still exist today and tell us about Korean history
The writings of Chinese philosopher Confucius influenced court and society
Officials set an example of good behaviour by their correct observance of certain ceremonies
These rituals showed that the rulers were diligent and moral
Just as the people they ruled were meant to be
These ceremonies are still observed at the Royal Ancestral Shrine in Seoul
The dragon is a symbol of royal power
and is used across many art forms
from ceremonial furniture
to ceramics decorated with a dragon...
...chasing a flaming pearl across the clouds