Stone Lanterns in Front of the Tomb of Bak Jung-son, Paju

These are two stone lanterns standing in front of the tomb of Gonghyogong Bak Jung-son and his wife, Lady Jeonggyeong. Bak Jung-son (1412–1466) was a civil official of the early Joseon period who held various posts and was especially gifted in astronomical observation. His wife, Lady Jeonggyeong of the Namhyeong Mun clan, was the daughter of Mun Seung-jo, who held the post of Gongjo jeongnang. Each of the two lanterns is made of two pieces of granite: one consists of a pedestal (daejwa) and a light chamber (hwasa) that holds the flame, while the other consists of a roofstone (okgaeseok) and, above it, a finial (boju) shaped like a lotus bud. On the lantern before the tomb of Bak Jung-son, the light windows (hwachang) on the front and back are square, but the one on the east side is circular and the one on the west side is shaped like a half-moon — an unusually distinctive arrangement. The square window symbolises the earth, the circular window the sun, and the half-moon window the moon. The lantern before the tomb of Lady Jeonggyeong is, overall, slimmer and taller than that before Bak Jung-son's tomb, and its windows on all four sides are square, offering a contrast with its companion. This lantern's light chamber and pedestal are carved from a single stone, and it is especially distinctive in that its window shapes symbolise the earth, sun, and moon respectively. Stone lanterns of such distinctive technique and form are extremely rare examples, and hold important historical and academic value.

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Where it is

Region

Paju, Gyeonggi

Designation

Treasure · 보물