'Gyeongju Dubai Chewy Cookie' wins top prize at North Gyeongsang tourism souvenir contest

North Gyeongsang Province and the North Gyeongsang Tourism Association announced Tuesday that 22 winning works had been selected from the 29th Tourism Souvenir Contest.

A total of 116 entries were submitted to this year's contest, drawing on the province's history, culture and tourism resources as their themes.

After judging, 22 works were recognized across multiple categories: one grand prize, one gold, two silver, three bronze, five encouragement awards and 10 honorable mentions.

The grand prize went to Kang Min-cheol for the Gyeongju Dubai Chewy Cookie, which judges praised for delicately capturing the defining features of the city's cultural heritage sites — including Cheomseongdae Observatory and Seokguram Grotto — in cookie form.

The gold prize went to Shim Eun-ha for the "Silla Gold Crown Silver Dagger Safety Cutter," a modern reinterpretation of a traditional silver dagger inspired by Silla royal court culture and metalcraft.

The two silver prizes went to Kang Seon-jeong of Daegu for "Wind Mackerel Under the Roof Tile," and to Lee Jun-cheon of Incheon (Dream Heaven and Dream Sky) for a decorative North Gyeongsang drawing goods kit designed for sticker application and coloring.

North Gyeongsang Province will support the promotion and distribution of the winning works through a contest catalog, publicity and exhibition activities, and participation in trade fairs including the Korea Tourism Souvenir Expo and the World Heritage Industry Exhibition.

"Tourism souvenirs are a medium that keeps the stories of North Gyeongsang alive in people's everyday lives," said Park Chan-woo, director of the province's culture, tourism and sports bureau. "We will work hard on promotion and distribution support so that the outstanding souvenirs discovered through this contest can translate into actual product sales and tourism spending."