A rare site has been unveiled at the royal palace Changdeokgung. Excavations revealed previously forgotten wells from the King Sejo period during the Chosun Dynasty.
Sejo the second son of the great king Sejong ruled from 1417 through 1468 and according to one record Sejo ordered the construction of four wells. Additionally, he is said to have named all four himself. The well remained buried following the Imjin War which lasted for six years when a united Japan led by Toyotomi Hideyoshi invaded Chosun in 1592.
The dig exposed a well made of granite over one and half-meters wide making the Changdeokgung well one of the biggest to be found. Records suggest that Sejo himself complimented the quality of the water he drank from this well calling it cool and tasty.
A second well found in the vicinity is 85-centimeters wide and experts suggest that the wooden construction material scattered near it indicate that it could be a long-sought well found on one ancient palace map.
According to the map the well was surrounded by wooden structures and underwent reconstruction during the Sukjong period between 1661 and 1720. In the past wells were believed to be sacred. By drinking from certain wells past royals hoped to improve their abilities to be rulers.
Shin Haejoo, Arirang News.
DEC 27, 2008
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Arirang Town
Wednesday, FEB 10, 2010, (KST) 
