Calligraphy by King Jeongjo

This is the draft of a special edict (byeoryu) that King Jeongjo showed to a group of Confucian students at Sungkyunkwan on 9 September 1798, after they failed to grasp the meaning of the royally assigned topic (eoje) at the chrysanthemum-themed state examination (gukje) and submitted blank or ill-prepared answers. This episode is confirmed in the Seungjeongwon ilgi (Diary of the Royal Secretariat), the Veritable Records of King Jeongjo, and the Hongjae jeonseo (the Complete Works of King Jeongjo). The document is written on a large sheet made by joining three pieces of mulberry paper, with extra characters inserted between the lines, and inappropriate characters blotted out with ink and rewritten. At the beginning of the edict is the passage, "That most scholars' abilities remain unrefined is my own shame; I therefore return this draft report and specially instruct you all," and the Veritable Records of King Jeongjo likewise records, "He instructed the students in his own hand, saying..." — both confirming that this is a draft written in the king's own hand. At the top of the paper are also six knife marks left when the document was cut for public posting. This is a rare example of a special edict issued by a Joseon king to students of Sungkyunkwan. Compared with other examples of King Jeongjo's calligraphy from his later years, the brushwork here is bold and vigorous, and the sheet itself is very large. It is also valued as a precious piece of calligraphy for having been transmitted at Bongmodang Hall as a record of King Jeongjo's instructive counsel (mohun). Moreover, since it vividly reveals both the character of the event and the king's convictions, it is highly valued from both a historical and an academic standpoint.

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Where it is

Region

Seongnam, Gyeonggi

Designation

Treasure · 보물