Royal crown of Silla, gold and jade, Silla Kingdom, Korea, excavated during the Seobongchong tumulus dig of 1926, dating back to the second half of the 5th century CE. National Museum of Korea, Seoul
Silla was a Korean kingdom that existed from 57 BCE to 935 CE in the southern and central Korean Peninsula and, alongside Baekje and Goguryeo, formed the Three Kingdoms of Korea. It was the smallest of the three in population. Traditionally founded by the semi-legendary Hyeokgeose, Silla was successively ruled by the Park, Seok, and Kim clans. Originating as a Jinhan chiefdom, it expanded by absorbing the Gaya confederacy and, with Sui and Tang Chinese support, conquered Baekje and Goguryeo in the 7th century. Unified Silla then controlled most of the peninsula until its decline and fragmentation, after which power passed to Goryeo in 935.
