故事以韩国的光州事件为历史背景，讲述在政治动荡的大时代下，三个来自不同背景年轻人的生活。高贤贞饰演的女主角是与政客勾结的富商之女。崔民秀和朴相原从高中时期成为好朋友，高考时崔民秀因为出身（父亲为革命军）不能上想上的大学，加入黑社会成为大哥。朴相原上了法大与高同一大学。高因热心于学生运动与父意见不和离家，认识朴后又认识崔。后朴入伍参加了光州事件的镇压，期间崔与高发展感情，但为高父反对并受陷害入狱。高终因学生运动受镇压而出逃又终被抓严重打击后改变生活方式，参与其父赌场业。而崔逃出狱后借助政客力量击败对手并成为高父的对手的帮手。朴最后成为检察官……

Sandglass is a South Korean television series considered one of the most significant and highest-rated Korean dramas in history. Written by Song Ji-na and directed by Kim Jong-hak, it aired on SBS in 1995 in 24 episodes.

A depiction of the tragic relationship among three friends affected by the political and civilian oppression of 1970s and 1980s Korea, the series mixed politics, melodrama, action, and great acting. It recorded a peak rating of 64.5%, the third highest of all time, and launched its leading trio of Choi Min-soo, Go Hyun-jung, and Park Sang-won into stardom. Its reenactment of the Gwangju Massacre remains one of the most realistic, devastatingly powerful, and unforgettable moments in Korean TV history.

대한민국의 격동기였던 80년대를 배경으로 태수, 우석, 혜린이라는 3명의 젊은이를 통해 그 시대의 삶을 들여다 본 드라마