Folding Screen of Jodaebi sasun chinggyeong jinhado (The 40th Birthday Celebration of Queen Dowager Jo)

The Folding Screen of Jodaebi sasun chinggyeong jinhado depicts the banquet held to celebrate the fortieth birthday of Queen Dowager Jo (1808–1890), mother of King Heonjong of Joseon. Queen Dowager Jo was invested as crown princess consort in 1819, the nineteenth year of King Sunjo, but the crown prince died young before ascending the throne, so she never became queen; later, when her son Heonjong became king, she was made queen dowager. The screen measures 458 cm wide and 169 cm high and consists of eight panels: seven depict pavilions, trees and landscapes in colour, while the last panel records the ranks and names of nine officials, including Vice Commander Jo Gi-yeong. The banquet, held on New Year's Day 1847, the thirteenth year of King Heonjong, in the courtyard before Injeongjeon Hall of Changdeokgung Palace, was attended by some 400 people. The screen realistically depicts civil and military officials in official robes distinguished by rank, other participants in the ceremony, and military officers standing in rows bearing spears and swords, offering a glimpse of a facet of royal court ritual of the time. The vivid mineral pigments used for the pavilions, trees and landscapes, together with the delicate rendering of the figures, suggest that the work was painted by top-ranking artists of the Royal Bureau of Painting. It is a valuable record not only for the history of painting but also for the study of costume and court customs of more than 180 years ago.

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Where it is

Region

Seo-gu, Busan

Designation

Treasure · 보물