Jija Chongtong Gun (1986-1)

The Jija Chongtong is a Korean cannon, the second largest among the Cheon (Heaven), Ji (Earth), Hyeon (Black) and Hwang (Yellow) types of chongtong, after the Cheonja Chongtong. It is 89.5 cm long, with an inner diameter of 10.5 cm and an outer diameter of 15 cm, and was cast in bronze in 1557, the 12th year of King Myeongjong, one month earlier than the Jija Chongtong held by Dong-A University Museum. It becomes thicker from the muzzle towards the powder chamber, and originally had two handles, both of which are now broken off. It has ten joints in total, including the one at the muzzle, and the seventh and eighth joints from the front are fused together, marking the division between the powder chamber and the gyeokmoktong, the wadding chamber into which a cylindrical wooden plug was driven to maximise the explosive force of the gunpowder. The Jija Chongtong had already been made during the reign of King Taejong of Joseon, and was further developed under King Sejong. From the sixteenth or seventeenth century onward, it retained Korea's traditional chongtong structure, divided into the muzzle, the wadding chamber and the powder chamber, and was loaded with large arrows or iron balls.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Jinju, Gyeongnam

Designation

Treasure · 보물