석탈해 昔脫解
Fourth king of Silla, first king of the Seok line, and founder of the Gyeongju (Wolseong) Seok clan
| Life | 미상 ~ 80 |
| Era | 신라 초기 |
| Clan | 경주 석씨 |
Life & career
Seok Tal-hae (?-80) was the fourth king of Silla (Talhae Isageum, r. 57-80) and is honored as the founder of the Gyeongju (Wolseong) Seok clan. Silla's throne passed among the Bak, Seok and Kim lines, and he was the first Seok to become king. He married Ahyo, a daughter of Namhae Chachaung, and is said to have taken the throne in 57 on the dying wish of Yuri Isageum.
Several accounts of his origin survive. The Samguk sagi says a great egg laid by a queen of Dapana was put in a chest and set adrift, and the chest landed at Ajinpo in Jinhan where an old woman took it in. The Samguk yusa (Garakguk-gi) says he came from Yongseong, reached Gaya first and contended with Kim Suro for the throne. Even his birth year differs by source, given as 19 BC or 5 BC.
During his reign he is said to have made Hogong the Daebo in 58 and to have found Kim Al-ji in the Sirim forest in 65, renaming it Gyerim. He died in 80, and his tomb is traditionally identified with the Royal Tomb of King Talhae in Dongcheon-dong, Gyeongju. The Seok kings are counted as eight, reigning 171 years in all.
The Child in the Chest
Talhae's birth is closer to myth than record. The Samguk sagi says the queen of Dapana bore a great egg, judged it inauspicious, and set it adrift in a chest. The chest was not taken in on the shore of Garak and landed at Ajinpo in Jinhan, where an old woman took it in. The Samguk yusa adds a version in which he came from Yongseong and, reaching Gaya first, contended with King Kim Suro for the throne, so the two legends are often read together.
Scholars have placed his origin in Hamgyeong Province, the Maritime region, Usan-guk and even Tamil India, and some, relying on Chinese histories, hold that he came from Baekje. None of these is settled, so it is best to keep legend and theory apart.
The Throne and Kim Al-ji
He is said to have taken the throne in the eleventh lunar month of 57 on the wish of Yuri Isageum. In 58 he made Hogong the Daebo; Hogong held Wolseong, and a tale says Talhae took the fortress from him. In 65 he found a boy in a golden chest in the Sirim forest, named him Kim Al-ji and renamed the forest Gyerim. Kim Al-ji is honored as the founder of the Gyeongju Kim clan and the Kim royal house of Silla.
The Royal Tomb and the Seok Descendants
He is said to have died in the eighth lunar month of 80, and his tomb is traditionally located in Dongcheon-dong, Gyeongju. The son of his son Seok Gu-chu was Beolhyu Isageum, and from Beolhyu's descendants the Seok kings such as Nae-hae and Jobun followed. His wife Ahyo is said to have been a Bak, daughter of Namhae Chachaung.
Grave
The Royal Tomb of King Talhae at San 17 Dongcheon-dong, Gyeongju (Historic Site No. 174) is traditionally held to be his tomb. It is a round earthen mound about 4.5 m high and 14.3 m across, surrounded by pine woods. The Sungsinjeon shrine is said to have been moved in front of the tomb in 1980.
Descendants
His grandson Beolhyu became the ninth king, and Seok kings followed in Nae-hae, Jobun, Cheomhae, Yurye, Girim and Heulhae. The lineage after Talhae was lost, so today's Gyeongju (Wolseong) Seok clan continues from Seok Jae-heung, a Goryeo gyoseorang said to be his 23rd-generation descendant, as the 1st-generation mid-founder.