10-story stone pagoda in Tapgol Park receives first up-close public viewing in 27 years

Class wrapping up on a Friday afternoon should have marked the start of the weekend, but Yang Seo-yeon still had something to do. Leaving Sungkyunkwan University, the global economics major rushed to Tapgol Park in Seoul’s Jongno District to guide visitors to the park’s iconic 10-story stone pagoda, designated National Treasure No. 2 in 1962. Yang started off by explaining to the group of visitors why she was introducing this monument, hidden behind 21.5 millimeter thick glass for over a quarter century. Yang and her peer, Park Gyeong-eun, had been part of S-Global Challenger, an extracurricular program run annually by Sungkyunkwan University that works on problem-solving through overseas exploration. Both were graduates from high schools in the Jongno area, and they formed part of a four-person team called “Yeoksa Jom Ail.” For their project, the team focused on interpreting the historical significance of Tapgol Park. Yang explained that despite passing Tapgol Park every day while commuting to school, they never felt they really knew it or that it was easy to enter. Since the IMF

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