Natural dyeing experience under the blue sky | Travel Course | K-Travel Mate

고대문화 중심지인 나주는 영산강유역을 배경으로 일찍이 염색문화와 실크생산의 큰 역할을 하여 왔다. 영산강과 바닷물이 합류했던 지리적 환경은 쪽재배와 뽕나무를 재배하기에 적합하여 이곳은 천연염색의 최적지이자 전국에서 유일하게 중요 무형문화재 염색장 기능 보유자도 활동하고 있는 곳이다.

Yeongsanpo skate fish is a well-being food that naturally ferments while caught skate fish travel upstream along the winding Yeongsan River waterway and drop anchor, creating a unique and exquisite taste. The site of the old Yeongsanpo port hosts over 40 skate fish restaurants and wholesalers, filling Skate Fish Street with a strong fermented skate fish smell. In the late Goryeo period, islands in Jeolla-do, including Heuksando, frequently faced Japanese pirate invasions. Islanders, constantly under threat, fled inland along the river to Yeongsanpo in Naju. Many refugees from near Heuksando settled here, giving the village its name. They caught fish near Heuksando, loaded them onto boats, and returned, but only skate fish did not spoil in the heat. This fermented skate fish became a local specialty of Yeongsanpo. The late Joseon scholar Jeong Yak-jeon recorded in Jasan Eobo that "Naju people enjoy eating fermented skate fish, often accompanying it with takju (rice wine)." Adjacent to this street is Seonchang Street with the Yeongsan River's yellow sailboat dock, and crossing Yeongsan Bridge leads to Yeongsan River Sports Park along the riverbank.

Yeongsanpo Lighthouse in Naju was built in 1915 at Yeongsanpo seonchang, the final stop for small boats on the Yeongsan River. It is the only lighthouse on an inland river in Korea, serving both as a water level gauge for the flood-prone Yeongsan River and as a lighthouse, and was in use until 1989. During the Japanese occupation, Yeongsanpo seonchang was a hub for extracting resources from the fertile Honam region, and until the 1960s, various ships came and went, distributing much seafood. The lighthouse is a white cylindrical concrete structure, relatively small compared to other lighthouses, and has preserved its original appearance, giving it high historical value. At night, the lighthouse lights up, asserting its presence. Right in front of Yeongsanpo Lighthouse is a Yeongsan River Hwangpodotbae experience center, and nearby is the Naju Skatefish Street.

Although wild eels are rarely caught due to the damming of the Yeongsan River estuary, Naju's Gujinpo—named for being the ninth bend out of twelve in the Yeongsan River—is famous for eels as it is where seawater and freshwater meet. Gujinpo eels are especially delicious because they grow eating mudfish. Currently, around 7 to 8 eel restaurants maintain the tradition centered on Gujinpo Samgeori, mostly established since the 1940s, cooking using their unique method resulting in similar quality taste. Gujinpo was called 'Gubunaru' as a ferry crossing where the Yeongsan River bends, and was once known as Hoejinpo because the river water curved around Angam Rock before gathering and bending here again. About 10 minutes by car (4.2 km) away are Yeongsan River Hwangpodotbae Ferry Terminal and Naju Skatefish Street. The Naju Bannam Tumuli Cluster is a burial mound site from the Three Kingdoms period. First excavated during the Japanese colonial era, it revealed unique large pottery jar graves not found elsewhere, alongside gilt-bronze crowns, gilt-bronze shoes, phoenix-patterned ring-handled swords (hwandudaedo), and other artifacts demonstrating the highest rulers' status. Unlike Goguryeo's stone-cist tombs, Baekje's stone chamber tombs, Silla's stone and wooden tombs, and Gaya's stone chamber graves, the pottery jar grave style was unique to the Yeongsan River basin. Early jar graves were half-buried in the ground and covered with low tumuli, but later the tumuli were built first, and then the jars were placed inside after digging into the top, with larger mounds. This form of using jar graves as burial style appears worldwide and was part of Korea's funerary customs since the Neolithic. However, the use of large dedicated pottery jars like those in the Yeongsan River basin was unique, understood as a funerary culture developed by indigenous powers there. Around Daean-ri, 12 tombs exist; Tomb No. 9 is the largest with nine jars and artifacts including gold rings, large swords, copper bracelets, glass beads, and pottery. Around Sinchon-ri, 9 tombs are distributed; excavations during the Japanese colonial period uncovered Tomb No. 9 and others, yielding a National Treasure gilt-bronze crown along with gilt-bronze shoes, gold rings, phoenix-patterned ring-handled swords, and copper bracelets. A 1999 re-excavation of Sinchon-ri Tomb No. 9 uncovered 32 cylindrical pottery pieces decorating the mound's rim. These pottery items correspond to 'haniwa' artifacts found in Japanese tombs, providing key clues to ancient Korea-Japan historical interactions. Over 14 tombs are distributed in Deoksan-ri, with construction dates judged similar to those of Sinchon-ri and Daean-ri around the mid to late 5th century. Tomb No. 10, the latest among the Bannam Tumuli, is a stone chamber tomb believed built after the mid-6th century when Baekje influence expanded, marking the decline of local pottery jar tomb traditions. It is recommended to also visit the nearby National Naju Museum.