Kumsusan Palace of the Sun, Mausoleum of the eternal leaders in Pyongyang, North Korea
Kumsusan Palace of the Sun is a mausoleum and museum in the Taesong district of northeastern Pyongyang. The building displays neo-Korean design elements alongside brutalist concrete forms, with columns and a surrounding park.
The palace building opened in 1976 as a residence for Kim Il-sung and converted into a mausoleum after his death in 1994. A second sarcophagus was later added for Kim Jong-il following his death in 2011.
Visitors change into felt slippers and move through the halls on moving walkways as they approach the sarcophagus. Each guest bows three times before the lying-in-state leader, once at each end and once along the glass casket's length.
Access is restricted to Thursday and Sunday mornings, requiring formal dress and passage through several security checkpoints. Photography is not allowed inside, and the tour follows a fixed route with constant supervision.
The palace gardens stay open all week even when the halls are closed, and they serve as a venue for national rallies. The building has almost no windows, with a single one on the top balcony of the north side.
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