South Korea unearths 20 Northern Song Dynasty coins

(ECNS) -- The Korean Institute of Cultural Relics announced on Thursday that 20 Northern Song Dynasty coins and a bronze tower were unearthed in the Goryeo Dynasty temple ruins on Jeju Island, Yonhap News Agency reported.

South Korea’s YTN TV reported that South Korean authorities would continue to investigate or specify the above items as cultural relics.

There are three types of coins unearthed, including Xianping Yuanbao, Huang Song Tongbao and Zhiping Yuanbao. South Korean archeologists deduced that the temple was constructed in the early or mid-11th century.

In addition to the coins, archeologists also discovered a "gold, copper multi-layer tower" in the temple site. The tower was used to hold Buddhist relics the size of an adult's fist. With a dragon head drawn on it, tower structures like windows and railings are well preserved. Archaeologists say the tower can be used to restore the Goryeo Dynasty architecture and is an important cultural relic.