Joseon bangyeok jido (Map of the Korean Territory)

A map of Korea made in early Joseon, 61 cm wide and 132 cm high. It is in three parts: the title Joseon bangyeok jido at the top, the map in the middle, and at the bottom the offices and names of those involved in making it. The map marks the prefectures and counties of the eight provinces and the naval and army commands, each county and prefecture in a different colour for easy reading, and depicts the courses of mountains and rivers in accurate detail. Its outline is very like a modern national map. It shows Manchuria to the north and Jejudo Island and Tsushima to the south, which reveals the early Joseon sense of territory. It is thought to have been made around 1557–58, the twelfth and thirteenth years of King Myeongjong. It went to Japan during the Imjin War and was kept on Tsushima, and was acquired in the 1930s. It is all the more valuable for showing the level and form of Korean mapmaking in this period, and as a work of known makers and date it is important for dating other maps.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Gwacheon, Gyeonggi

Designation

National Treasure · 국보