'World Heritage Festival Suwon Hwaseong' Exploring the objects in the poster #1

 

This poster is a poster of < World Heritage Festival Suwon Hwaseong >. It was made under the theme of "Suwon Hwaseong Fortress and its Records."

The objects in the poster are expressed by using embroidery techniques. We have introduced these techniques and the theme in previous posting.

If you look at the poster, various objects are placed around the title box. In this posting, we’ll examine the origin, meaning and purpose of these objects in more detail.

The source of the poster objects.

The objects in the poster are extracted and reconstructed images from <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe>, and <Wonhaeng Eulmyojeongri Uigwe>. First, we will look at the objects from <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe>.

Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe, (sorce: National Museum of Korea)

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<Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe> is a report that summarizes most of the contents that could be recorded about the construction of Suwon Hwaseong Fortress. (Plans, operation processes, participants, expenses required, materials, construction methods, drawings, etc.)

King Jeongjo was so interested in this record that he ordered the publication and distribution after the very first draft was completed in November 1796.

Especially, in <Doseol>, fortresses and annexes are drawn in detail just like modern architectural drawings. Therefore, it became a very important data for restoring Hwaseong Fortress, which was damaged by the Japanese colonial rule and the Korean War. As a result, this made Suwon Hwaseong Fortress to be listed as a World Heritage Site.

Although Uigwe is of such high value for Suwon Hwaseong Fortress, it is true that we do not have many opportunities to examine it in person.

Therefore, I would like to take time to get closer to Uigwe through the poster of the <World Heritage Festival Suwon Hwaseong>.

Objects from <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe>

These are the objects that we’ll take a look at in this posting.

1) Paldalmun Gate in <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe>

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Paldalmun Gate, a symbol of *"Sa Tong Pal Dal," is an object extracted from <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe>. It is the south gate of Suwon's four gates that stands magnificently with its semicircular ‘Ongseong’ shape and features all the forms commonly found in Korean castle gate architecture. We could say that it shows the typical version of "Castle gate in the late Joseon Dynasty". ​​*<Sa Tong Pal Dal> means Stretching in all Directions.

Paldalmun Gate is Korea's Treasure No. 402, and it is a building that has not suffered from the fires of the Korean War and has maintained its original form.

We recommend comparing how similar the Paldalmun Gate in <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe> is to the current Paldalmun Gate.

2) ”Jab Sang” in <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe> (Pig Shape) (*Jab Sang are statues on the roof of a palace or a king's house)

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Jab Sang can be seen not only at Paldalmun Gate but also above “Jang Rak Dang”, which was used as the sleeping quarters in *Crown Princess Hong's bedroom. *Crown Princess Hong is King Jeongjo’s mother

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While it was first introduced in the Song Dynasty, related materials can be found in Korea from the Goryeo period. Jab Sang is named after the characters and animals from the Tang Dynasty of China <The Journey to the West>.

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It has long served as a deterrent against bad luck, but it is also a decoration that adds dignity to the building. Among various gods, the pig shape Jab Sang is a god of the earth, and is mainly located behind the other Jab Sang animals.

3) ”Jab Sang” in <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe> (Human Shape)

Human Jab Sang is shaped like a human and resembles Samjang Monk from <The Journey to the West>.

Human Jap Sang itself is a very old pattern that has been expressed in prehistoric petroglyphs, however its meaning or symbolism is not clearly known.

4) ”Jab Sang” in <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe> (Monkey Shape)

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Monkey is one of Twelve Earthly Branches, and is a pattern drawn on various artifacts and relics from various eras. Its shape looks like Sonokong from <The Journey to the West>, and it is mainly located at the front of the other Jab Sang animals.

5) *”Yong Du” in <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe> (* Yong Du means Dragons’s Head)

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A dragon head-shaped decoration placed at both ends of “Yongmaru” and at the end of “Chunnyeomaru” or “Naerimmaru”.​

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This is a well-known decorative tile that was common during the Joseon Dynasty. It is a symbolic decoration that can only be found in buildings related to the royal family. In particular, in Joseon Dynasty, where wooden architecture was the main focus, there is a folklore and magical meaning to protect buildings from fires and disasters by decorating water-related dragons on the roof.

The story of Uigwe on the poster. How was it?

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We looked thoroughly at the poster designed by interpreting valuable Uigwe in a modern way. I hope it was a time that brought you closer to the original construction of Hwaseong Fortress through the records of <Hwaseong Seongyeok Uigwe>.

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The <World Heritage Festival Suwon Hwaseong> focuses on Uigwe and records that played an important role in listing Suwon Hwaseong Fortress as a World Heritage Site in order to show its value.

Please pay a lot of attention to <World Heritage Festival Suwon Hwaseong>, a festival that promotes the value of Suwon Hwaseong to the world.