Kyong-bok Kung

Intro

History

Vernacular Architecture

High-Style Architecture

Bibliography

Links

The first palace built in Seoul when it first became the capital was Kyong-bok Palace.  Construction began in 1394 under the supervision of Sim Tokbu and Chong Tojon.   Despite several fires and periods of neglect, it was rebuilt in 1865 and served as the royal residence until the queen’s assassination in 1895.  

95% of the rebuilt palace was again decimated during the Japanese occupation in the early part of the twentieth century.  Some of the buildings of Kyong-bok Palace took further damage during the Korean War.  New rounds of construction have continued up until the present day.  Originally, there were 330 buildings on the site; only a fraction (around 36) remain today.

Kyong-bok Palace is extremely popular today:  many visitors to Seoul, as well as many residents, visit the palace daily.  Wedding photographs in Kyong-bok Palace are also very popular.  In addition to the many buildings on the site, this palace also contains Pagoda Park, which houses many pagodas from defunct temples.

Traditionally, the only people that entered the palace through the front gate, the Kunjong-mun, were the King and high-ranking dignitaries.  Side entrances on the east and west were used by everyone else.


Pagoda from Wongak-sa
 
Now in Pagoda Park in Seoul
14' tall, 13 sides 

This forty-acre palace area is laid out in a Chinese axial pattern in the shape of a mandala.  The buildings are laid out so that each major building stands alone and is separated by a wall  (similar to Pul-guk-sa Temple).  The clustered buildings and walls give the palace a slightly labyrinthine appearance.  The main hall of the palace, Keun-jong Chon, lies at the terminus of a boulevard that points towards Mount Pugak.  It is believed that the palace's position made it an ideal focus for ki (geomancy and shamanism have lasting ties in the Korean culture).


A view of some of the lesser buildings in Kyong-bok

During the Japanese domination, their government building was placed on the spot occupied by Kunjong-mun (the gatehouse directly in front of Keun-jong Chon) - which they moved to the east side of the city.  When the Koreans reestablished sovereignty, the granite building was too expensive to tear down, so they used it as a government building for several years before turning it into the National Museum.

Due to a variety of reasons laid out in Min Soo Kang's article "Kyongbok Palace:  History, Controversy, and Geomancy," the National Museum no longer stands in front of the palace:  it was demolished on August 15, 1995.  The view from Keun-jong Chon towards Mount Pugak is no longer obstructed, and the Kunjong-mun has been moved back to its original position.


Keun-Jong Chon from the southeast
Barely visible are the inter-columnar brackets found in Tap'o buildings.

Also known as the Hall of Untiring Rule, Keun-jong Chon was the throne room for the Yi Dynasty.  Completed in 1867, this hall is one of the few that have survived the various invasions and wars that Seoul has seen in the last century.

This Ta’Po Style building is built on a series of 5 bays by 5 bays, with a doubled set of huge curving roofs matching the two platforms on which it rests. 

More than half the height of the interior is made up of the roof and ceiling: with its interlocking and interweaving system of colored ceiling brackets and coffers, the ensemble creates a very impressive interior space that can only be viewed from the doorway: visitor access is restricted.

Kyong-hoi Ru
To the northwest of the Throne Hall is Kyong-hoi Ru.  The open-air Banquet Hall stands in the center of an artificial pond and is only reachable by three stone bridges.  The pink lotuses filling the artificial lake embody the belief that the country’s fertility was dependant upon symbolic activities and the use of symbolism by the king: the pink lotus is associated with fertility.  Kyong-hoi Ru is the most famous hall in Kyong-bok Kung.
The symbolism embodied by the Banquet Hall continues till this day: the currency of Korea bears a picture of it.  The building is also a powerful symbol of Korea as a whole.  The alternate name for Kyong-hoi Ru is "Auspicious Meeting," reflecting the diplomatic function of the building.  

The original Banquet Hall was burned down during the Hideyoshi invasion, but was reconstructed in 1867 as a copy of the original structure.  The complex has two stories, the first being a large, cool floor capable of serving more than a hundred guests; the second is a dual-purpose indoor/outdoor veranda. Forty-eight tapered stone columns support the second story and huge curved roof.

There are many many other buildings incorporated in Kyongbok Palace including Hyang-won Chong, a smaller, eight-sided two-story pavilion that is situated on an artificial island in a large pond northeast of the Banquet Hall; Sujongjon, which was a cabinet office during the Choson Dynasty; Manchujon and Chonchujon Halls, the latter being one of the oldest buildings in the palace; Sajongjon Hall, where the king conducted day-to-day business; and Chipkyongdang Hall, a royal bedchamber.


Sajongjon Hall, an excellent example of how ornate Tap'o architecture can get.