Doseongdo (Map of the Capital)

This is a map of Hanyang, the Joseon capital, produced at the end of the eighteenth century. Set against the backdrop of Dobongsan Mountain and Bukhansan Mountain, it depicts the outstanding natural setting of Hanyang in the manner of a landscape painting, centred on the naesasan, the four inner mountains guarding the capital: Baegaksan, Inwangsan, Mongmyeoksan (also called Namsan) and Taraksan (also called Naksan). The exact date of production is unknown, but the map can be dated to the late eighteenth century because it shows the Jangyongyeong, a royal guard unit established in 1785 and abolished in 1802, standing to the right of Jongmyo Shrine. The map is oriented to match the viewpoint of a king surveying state affairs while facing south: south is placed at the top of the map and north at the bottom. Human features within the city walls are rendered flatly, with numerous place names recorded so as to contrast with the surrounding mountain terrain. Notes in the margins record the administrative districts, the size of the city wall and the state of the roads, taking Donhwamun Gate of Changdeokgung Palace, the main palace of the time, as the reference point. The work faithfully employs every technique used in conventional landscape painting — composition, brushwork, texture strokes, methods of rendering trees, and colouring — and shows a strong concern for painterly expression. It follows the jingyeong sansu, or true-view landscape, style that became popular in the eighteenth century through Jeong Seon (1676–1759), and is outstanding in its painterly quality.

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Where it is

Region

Gwanak-gu, Seoul

Designation

Treasure · 보물