K O R E A N Summer 2014 | Vol. 7 No. 4 HERITAGE WINTER 2014 Vol. 7 No. 4 Vol. ISSN 2005-0151 KOREAN 2 | 1 HERITAGE Quarterly Magazine of the Cultural Heritage Administration KOREAN HERITAGE WINTER 2014 Cover Black symbolizes winter. The symbolism KOREAN originates from the traditional “five directional HERITAGE winter 2014 | Vol 7 No.4 colors” based on the ancient Chinse thought of wusing or ohaeng in Korean. Tha five col- ors were associated with seasons and other phenomena in nature including the fate of hu- mans. The cover design features a traditional Korean musical instrument, gayageum. For more stories on this, see page 32. KOREAN HERITAGE is also available on the website (http://English.cha.go.kr) and smart devices. 2 | 3 KOREAN HERITAGE CHA News Vignettes A Korean Folk Game Korea’s Community Band Music Inscribed on the UNESCO List Yut nori, a Fortune-telling Game for All Yut nori is a traditional board game played with four wooden sticks, transmitted from The colorful, infectiously joyous rustic performing art Nongak, a highlight of Korean the Three Kingdoms Period. The board game usually takes place between two individuals countryside festivals and celebrations since the 1900s, has successfully entered the and also between two or three teams. Yut games are played customarily from during the UNESCO Representative List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. The season of celebrations ushering in the new year, between New Year’s Day and Daeboreum inscription was made at the 9th Intergovernmental Committee for the Safeguarding of on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month. Yut nori can be played by anyone regardless Intangible Cultural Heritage held on November 24–28 in Paris. Nongak is a performing age or sex, and it is also not restricted by special limitations. art encompassing music, dance, and theater, performed mainly by bands of farmers and amateur musicians for communal solidarity and well-being. The community Yut sticks are made of hardwood, slightly bulging in the middle and tapering toward performance comes with features unique to each region, and there exists a great range of each end. The upside of a stick is rounded, and painted or soldered with flower or bird varieties across the country. motifs; the downside is flat and its edges are rounded to facilitate rolling. Tokens, or mal, should be distinguishable between opponents by shape or Having contributed to boosting cooperation and enhancing local identity in traditional color. Each team starts with four tokens; anything—buttons, society, nongak continues to offer an arena for musical expression and stimulating pebbles, and beads—can be used as yut nori tokens. conviviality among community members. Community festivals finish off with the performance of nongak, and the uproarious music created by percussion instruments Yut nori is played for fun and also for fortune-telling for the arouse ecstatic excitement among participants and audiences alike. coming year. Divination by yut nori is reported in Gyeongdo jabji (Miscellaneous Records of the Capital) and Dongguk sesigi A Joseon Ship Excavated Near Mado Island (Seasonal Customs of the Eastern Kingdom). The results of yut nori are believed to tell the luck of a village or the size of the An ancient vessel, assumed to have been built during the Joseon Dynasty, has been coming harvest, and also individual fortunes. excavated off the coast of Mado Island, Taean, Chungcheongnam-do Province. It is thought to be the first of its kind from the Joseon period. A survey found that the ship is 11.5 meters long and 6 meters wide, its shape prototypical of Korea’s ancient vessels. Inside the ship were found two pieces of buncheong ware and in its vicinity, 111 pieces of white porcelain. The white porcelain bowls, estimated to have come from the late 18th century to early 19th century, were overlapped with each other by 10 pieces, and each of the packs of 10 porcelain bowls was put on a cushion of straws. It is the first time that bundled Joseon-era white porcelain bowls have been found, evidence of maritime trade in white porcelains during Joseon. A total number of 12 ancient ships have been found so far; except one from the Unified Silla period, the rest all originate from the Goryeo period. 4 | 5 KOREAN HERITAGE CONTENTS Seowon, Confucian Academies in Korea Photo Gallery Confucian Academies of Korea Poised Nakdonggang River 06 for World Recognition Lifeline for Cities and Wintering Habitat for Birds 24 Heritage Today Foreigner's View Catholic Legacies in Korea Visited by the Pope Toolboxes in Transition: Communicating 12 Musical Heritage in Today’s World 32 Human Heritage Historic Village Jeong Yak-yong Seogeup Village 16 Reformist and Advocate for Practical Learning A Showcase of Jeju-do Folk Culture 38 Natural Heritage Intangible Heritage 20 The Mind-blowing Scenery of Naksansa Temple by the Sea Traditional Drinks and Drinking Culture 44 Seowon, Confucian Academies in Korea 6 | 7 Confucian Academies of Korea Poised for World Recognition Text by Park Jin-jae (Ph. D.), Korea Seowon Association Photos by Oh Jong-eun The principles and functions of Confucian academies of the past have been successfully taught and practiced until today. With their legacy of moral education to offer and practical functions to disseminate Confucian values, these rural institutions of academic excellence and Confucian worship rites are a valuable cultural and educational heritage of Korea. 1. Dosan Seowon, built in 1574 in commemoration of Yi Hwang (1501–1570). Seowon, Confucian Academies in Korea 8 | 9 2 2 3 2. ‌Oksan Seowon, built in 1573 in Confucian Academies of Korea Seowon Ready for World Recognition 3. ‌Sosu Seowon, built in 1543 in commemoration of Yi Eon-jeok commemoration of An Hyang (1491–1553). (1243–1306). Seowon, Korean Confucian academies, were private institutions for higher education More than 1,000 Confucian academies were established throughout the country during established by the sarim, or landed rustic literati, a political faction whose power the Joseon Dynasty, but most—except for only 47—were demolished after a series of and influence grew as Neo-Confucianism took root as the governing ideology of government crackdowns, particularly the one ordered by Regent Heungseon in 1871. the Joseon Dynasty (1392–1910). From the mid-16th century, the rural literati Many of the shuttered Confucian academies were later rebuilt, but only a few of them embarked on building seowon in scenic natural settings as ideal spaces for pursuing have preserved their authenticity and integrity until the present. studies and immersion in Confucian principles, where scholars and students cultivate both scholarly excellence and moral character. Out of the 600 seowon extant throughout the country today, nine have been selected as the most superlative and outstanding exemplars in terms of historic, aesthetic, and A Confucian academy is composed of three discrete spaces that serve distinct but academic significance and are undergoing preparations for nomination for inscription on integrally related functions. In the ritual space, scholars paid tribute to Confucian the UNESCO World Heritage List. The nomination is being pursued as part of national sages of the past, honoring their intellectual legacy. They did rigorous reading efforts to further disseminate the cultural and historic values of seowon and to maintain and discussion of the Confucian canon in the study space, and sought relief from their vitality as cultural heritage well into the future. everyday stresses through enjoyment of the beautiful natural environment in the relaxation space. Confucian academies functioned as hubs for the management The nine Confucian academies are Sosu Seowon in Yeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do of social, cultural, and academic activities in their local communities. The lofty Province; Namgye Seowon in Hamyang, Gyeongsangnam-do; Oksan Seowon in principle stressing the significance of moral values and the academies’ role at the Gyeongju, Gyeongsangbuk-do; Dosan Seowon in Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do; Piram center of intellectual, political, and social development in the countryside that were Seowon in Jangseong, Jeollanam-do; Dodong Seowon in Dalseong, Daegu; Byeongsan characteristic of seowon in the past have been well maintained to the present. Seowon in Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do; Museong Seowon in Jeongeup, Jeollabuk-do; Seowon, Confucian Academies in Korea 10 | 11 and Donam Seowon in Nonsan, Chungcheongnam-do. Each of them is characterized Tangible and Intangible Values by particular qualities and legacy of surpassing excellence. The primary educational purpose of seowon was to foster intellectual excellence with an underpinning of moral ① ‌Sosu Seowon, built in 1543 as the first seowon of Joseon, is renowned for character; seowon still serve as institutions for disseminating exemplary protocols for ritual ceremonies and everyday rites. morals and ethics. The Confucian academy was not simply ② ‌Namgye Seowon, built in 1552, is distinguished for its endeavors for the a place to acquire knowledge but also to learn and practice edification of rural residents. moral values. Its educational principle which prioritized the ③ ‌Oksan Seowon, built in 1573 , operated with a particular focus on family nurturing of character through self-reflection offers resounding activities of the sage honored. implications for modern society, as increasingly people sense ④ ‌Dosan Seowon, built in 1574, is renowned for enshrining one of the most the erosion of moral values, and is also worth being shared and prominent Confucian scholars of Joseon and for its education function. promoted in other parts of the world. 6 ⑤ ‌Piram Seowon, built in 1590, served as a political stronghold for the rural literati rooted in the southeastern section of the country. Still serving as venues for the transmission of morals, seowon ⑥ ‌Dodong Seowon, built in 1605, embodies in its exemplary location, spatial exemplify tangible and intangible values in their architecture composition, structures, and landscape the most desirable environment for a and function. Seowon architecture epitomizes the cosmology Confucian academy.