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K-CULTURAL HERITAGE

Everlasting Legacies of Korea

  • 1978.2.23
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    Talchum (Mask Dance) is a stage play in which one person or people wearing a mask takes the role of a person, animal or a supernatural being (god), delivering a message through dialogues or dances. Talchum was performed throughout the country until the early Joseon Period. After the Sandae (a type of mask dance) came no longer to be performed in the Royal Palace in 1634 (the 12th year of King Injong’s reign), it was still enjoyed as a pastime by ordinary people.

    Eunyul Talchum was performed for 2-3 days on Dano (May 5 in the lunar calendar), Buddha’s birthday (April 8), and on Baekjung (July 15). It is said that people who fled to islands during war 200-300 years before wore masks on their return home as they felt ashamed, and that was the origin of Eunyul Talchum. Eunyul Talchum is composed of six acts, Lion Dance, Sangjwa Dance, Mokjung Dance, Old Monk Dance, and Dance of the Old Couple. Prior to the performance, the troupe held a sacrificial rite in a forest and marched to the site of the performance, entertaining people along the road. There are a total of 28 characters appearing on the performance. The play included satires about nobles harassing commoners, depraved monks, and male chauvinism in the custom of allowing a man to take plural wives.

    Eunyul Talchum displays a relationship with Bongsan Talchum (Mask Dance of Bongsan) and Haeju Talchum (Mask Dance of Haeju), both of which stem from Hwanghaedo Talchum (Mask Dance of Hwanghae-do).☆
  • 2007.2.23
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    ☆Pyeongchang Hwangbyeongsan Hunting Folk is a folklore based on winter community hunting, which can only be seen in highland areas over 700 meters above sea level and mountainous areas with a snowfall of more than 1 meter. It retains the same hunting folk style including food, clothing, community faith, and hunting practices, especially a hunting folk group that reproduces traditional mountain hunting culture in Gangwon Province such as hunting methods, hunting tools, and hunting festivals.
  • 2007.2.23
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    ☆Sokcho Domun Nongyo is a farming song that is inherited from Domun Village, an agricultural village formed along the Ssangcheon Stream. In particular, it is well preserved by villagers even in the midst of the disappearance of many agricultural songs during the modernization process, so it has a large designated value for systematic preservation and transmission of traditional culture.
  • 1971.2.24
    designated date
    Akgijang refers to the skill of making instruments used to play the country’s traditional music or to an artisan with such a skill. It is presumed on the basis of murals dating from the Goguryeo Period displaying wind, string, and percussion instruments that such artisans existed during the Three Kingdoms Period (57 BC – 668 AD). During the Joseon Period (1392 – 1910), musical instruments required by the government were made at an independent institution named Akgijoseongcheong (the Office of Production of Musical Instruments) within the Royal Court.

    The number of types of the country’s traditional musical instruments comes to 60 – 70. Gayageum (twelve-stringed zither) and geomungo (six-stringed zither) are the leading ones, followed by ajaeng (seven-stringed zither), daejaeng (fifteen-stringed zither), and hogeum (two-stringed fiddle). Wagonghu (harp), sugonghu (vertical harp), dangbipa (four-stringed Chinese mandolin), hyangbipa (Korean mandolin), yanggeum (dulcimer), geumgwasul are produced, but rarely used.

    Generally, the sounding board of a string instrument is made of Paulownia wood. The bottom board is made of chestnut and pine wood. The wood of the jujube tree, ebony, and Chinese juniper tree is used to make pieces decorating instruments. Paulownia, in addition to being rot resistant, has good resonance properties and does not crack during drying.

    Akgijang is protected through designation as important intangible cultural heritage. Buk (drum) making skills were integrated into Akgijang in March 1995.☆
  • 1971.2.24
    designated date
    ☆Yaryu(field playing) is a custom of Ogwangdae(mask dance drama) that was first performed in inland areas of Gyeongsangnam-do but spread to Suyeong, Dongnae, and Busanjin.

    Yaryu literally means playing in an open field. This mask play was performed by non-professionals such as villagers. Suyeong Yaryu is performed by villagers when the full moon rises on the night of January 15 on the lunar calendar after holding a sacrificial rite for mountain guardian deities, village spring water, and the spirit of General Choe Yeong.

    Two hundred years ago, a naval commander had a troupe of clowns in Bamma-ri, Chogye (present-day Yulji-ri, Deokgok-myeon, Hapcheon-gun, Gyeongsangnam-do) play a round of merrymaking for his troops in a naval compound. This is said to have been the origin of Suyeong Yaryu.

    The performance is composed of four acts: Nobleman’s Dance, Yeongno Dance, Dance of an Old Couple, and Lion Dance. Prior to the play, the troupe marches, playing music, to entertain spectators along the road to the site of performance. At the end of the performance, they collect the masks used and burn them as a rite of praying for the peace of the village.

    Characters appearing in the performance are 11 in all, four from the noble family, a son of the head of a clan, Malttugi (a servant), Yeongno (a therianthropic character), an old woman, Jedaegaksi(a hierophanic character), a lion and a tiger. The performance includes a satire about nobles and deals with the problem of concubines. In contrast with the other Yaryu, it does not have a leper dance, but it does include a lion dance, which is missing from the other Yaryu.

    Suyeong Yaryu is a play performed by masked performers. It is a ritual and satirical play with artistic quality performed by villagers.
  • 1990.2.24
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    ☆"Bal" means a shade made of thread woven from reeds or slender bamboo that is used to cover the sun on a summer day or interior decoration by hanging. "Jukryum" refers to a "dae-bal" that is woven with a string or thread.

    The production process is to store the collected two to three years old bamboo and dry it in the shade to ensure its purity, and then to produce it in the order of cutting, shaving, grinding, and weaving.

    Some of them are woven with patterns on the edges of the lines. Some of them are decorated with patterns of Ssanghui(喜喜) or life(壽) or luck(福); 卍 pattern around them. Outer corners are sometimes decorated with navy blue lines.

    It is said that the original production site of Jukryum was Damyang. Currently, Park Seong-chun, the holder of the bamboo screen function, continues his craftsmanship of making traditional Damyang bamboo.
  • 1993.2.25
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    ☆Andong Songhwaju, a liquor made by the Jeonju Yu Family, was used as a ritual offering for ancestors during ancestral rites, and was used to entertain precious guests. Although it is difficult to know when it began to be made, it was said that Jeongjae (1777-1861) had already used it as a ritual, indicating that it was more than 200 years old.

    Songhwaju is a clear alcoholic drink with an alcohol level of 15° to 18°. The scent of pine needles, pressed chrysanthemums, and lonicer aflower is considered very unique.
  • 1996.2.27
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    ☆Somokjang refers to a carpenter who has the skills and skills to produce wood furniture such as a building door, a window, a wardrobe, a gauge, a desk, and a door-gap, which are symmetrical to Daemokjang.

    According to records, carpenters have been around since the Silla Dynasty, and the name "somokjang" has been called since the Goryeo Dynasty. Until the early Joseon Dynasty, wooden furniture was mainly made for the royal family and the upper class, but during the late Joseon Dynasty, it was widely distributed to the private sector, showing local characteristics based on self-sufficiency.

    Jo Chan-young, the owner of somokjang, set foot in the furniture factory of Angeonsa Temple and took charge of about 30 large and small construction projects over a decade. There are clear traces of efforts to inherit traditional techniques by using traditional tools and selecting appropriate materials.
  • 1996.2.27
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    ☆Geumsan Ginseng Baekju is a traditional liquor-making method handed down to the Kimnyeong Kim family in Geumsan, which is recorded in the "Japrok" of Kim's family. According to the report, whole wheat and ginseng are mixed to make yeast by fermenting them for three months. The rice and the prepared yeast and ginseng are mixed to make an pre-liquor. Add wormwood, pine needles, ginseng, and rice and ferment them for 40 to 60 days. When the alcohol is fully cooked, filter it out and use a ring to distill it. The alcohol level is about 43 percent, and it smells like ginseng and has a soft color. Kim Chang-soo, a functional holder, is Kim Mun-ki's 18th-generation descendant and has inherited the technique from his mother and grandfather.
  • 2007.2.28
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    ☆In the area of Sangguri and Haguri in Aewol-eup, folk songs such as "Moshwi-Moving Sori," "Stepping on a fertilizer song," "Carrying load sori," and "Sound of grinding a field" are usually sung when farming. These folk songs are called "Sound of Farming Oat Bori" and are also enjoyed as a play.

    The "Sound of Farming Oat-Bori," a folk song play, won the grand prize at the 45th National Folk Arts Festival and was designated Jeju Island Intangible Cultural Property No.18 on February 28, 2007.
  • 2018.2.28
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    ☆Dongjanggak refers to the art of engraving the seal on metal such as the seal of state or the Royal seal. The genealogy of the Dongjanggak-jang leads to Hwang So-san, Jeong Gi-ho(Seokbul), and Jeong Min-jo(Mokbul).

    Jeong Min-jo was born in 1944, and widely known as "Mokbul(a wooden image of Buddha)".

    Jeong Min-jo learned Chinese and calligraphy from his teenage years by naturally accepting seal engraving and calligraphy early on in the family atmosphere. He began to learn calligraphy in earnest from his middle school years.

    He gained unique materials and innovative ways of expression through 50 years of hard work, and also pioneered another realm from his father's world. Thus, so-called "the world of Dongjanggak of Mokbul" was formed, which combines calligraphy techniques, painting sense, and delicate engraving.

    The first private exhibition was held at the age of 27 in 1968 at the "Hee" coffee shop in Gwangbok-dong, and in April 1985, the second private exhibition 'Seokbul Mokbul'. The 3rd individual exhibition was first exhibited at the Korean Art Museum in Yongin, Gyeonggi-do in 1996, and the 4th individual exhibition ['Mokbul Jeong Min-jo jeon'] was held at Seoul Gallery Samgyeong in November 2002 from November 7 to 13, 2002. In March 2007, the 5th individual exhibition 'Wave rises with flowers blooming on an old tree' was held as an invitational exhibition of gallery Montmartre in Busan.
  • 2008.2.29
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    ☆Bang Chun-woong has done onggi making as his main occupation following his great-grandfather Bang Yeon-ha and his father Bang Soon-bok. Upon his father's early death(1954), he began to learn from the teachings of the late Lee Yeong-jun(1901~1973), and became the leader of onggi handicraft team. The contents of the work are kiln-making, Chungcheong-do traditional earthenware making and fire burning.

    Currently, he is trying to achieve the maturity of culture that can discover the function and beauty of Onggi by understanding, teaching, and promoting traditional Onggi culture to students who are growing up through Onggi Experience Center and those who are interested in Onggi.
  • 2008.2.29
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    ☆Onggi-jang Lee Ji-soo has been inheriting the Onggi production for four generations since his grandfather settled in Onggi Village to avoid persecution by the Catholic Church. The Onggi Village in Geumsan-ri, Dogo-myeon was the best onggi-making village in the Janghangseon area until about 50 years ago, but only Lee Ji-su is currently making Onggi now.
  • 2008.2.29
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    ☆Mr.Jeong Gyu-heon was designated as an intangible cultural asset designated by the province in 2008 and has been a gangdoksa(lecturer) who reads Korean traditional novels.
  • 2008.2.29
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    ☆Monk Banghyeon was born in Beopryunsa Temple in Yesan, Chungcheongnam-do and has been developing Yeongsan Daejae, a ritual ceremony for traditional Korean Buddhism, for a long time.

    He is a Buddhist monk who is widely passed down in traditional Buddhist rituals, along with panpae and dance, which are unique sounds of the Gulf of Chungcheongnam-do, including being invited to perform in Korea as well as in the Netherlands, Belgium, Austria, Poland, and China.

    The reason why local sounds and dances are being passed down well around the Chungcheong-do budget is because they have been a protector of Banghyeon (Bomyeong)'s more than 30 years of budget culture.