Celestial Chart Stone

A rectangular block of stone carved with the forms of the heavens, made by order of King Taejo Yi Seong-gye, who founded Joseon, to display the authority of the new dynasty; eleven astronomers including Gwon Geun and Yu Bang-taek made it. It was completed by correcting the errors of a Goguryeo star chart used as its model, and its content is arranged in two parts. The upper part is carved with the star map and brief explanations; the lower gives the chart's name, the background and process of its making, the names of its makers and the date. The star map places the north pole at the centre and shows the ecliptic, the path of the sun, and the celestial equator midway between the poles. It includes all the stars that can be seen with the naked eye: the sky near the ecliptic is divided into twelve, and 1,467 stars are marked as dots. From it the movements of the sun, moon and five planets (Mercury, Venus, Saturn, Mars and Jupiter) can be followed, and the seasonal divisions told from their positions. Made in 1395, the fourth year of King Taejo, it is the second-oldest carved stone star chart in the world, after the Chunyou astronomical chart of Southern Song China. Its surface is now badly worn and parts are hard to read, but it is a precious relic that suggests the original form of the Goguryeo chart.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Jongno-gu, Seoul

Designation

National Treasure · 국보