Monument for the 40th Anniversary of King Gojong’s Enthronement, Seoul

This monument commemorates the 40th anniversary of Emperor Gojong's (r. 1863–1907) accession to the throne, and his entry, at the age of 51, into the Giroso, an institution honouring senior officials; it stands within a bijeon, a pavilion built to protect the stele. The monument also commemorates the occasion on which Gojong first changed the name of the country to the Korean Empire and adopted the title of emperor. The Giroso was an institution that gave privileged treatment to civil officials of the second senior rank or above who had reached the age of 70; it succeeded the Giyeonghoe of the Goryeo period. King Taejo of Joseon had personally joined the Giyeonghoe in the year he turned 60. As later kings did not live long enough to enter the Giroso, King Sukjong and King Yeongjo, among others, entered ahead of schedule on the grounds that they were approaching 60. Following their example, and at the recommendation of his officials, Gojong entered at the age of 51. The monument consists of a turtle-shaped base, the stele body and a dragon-carved capstone. The front of the stele body bears an inscription in the hand of the crown prince, later Emperor Sunjong; the text was composed by Yun Yong-seon and written by Min Byeong-seok. The building erected to protect the stele is a pavilion-style structure with three bays to the front and three to the side, with a stone balustrade set around its platform. The gate built to the south of this building has stone pillars and an iron door; its centre bay carries a rainbow-shaped stone lintel inscribed with the name 'Mansemun', meaning 'Gate of Ten Thousand Years'. During the Japanese colonial period this gate was removed by Japanese and used elsewhere as a house gate; it was recovered and restored after Liberation. The bijeon protecting the stele was built just before the framework of traditional architectural style broke down in the early 20th century, and is a particularly fine example of this type of building from that period. Together with the other buildings of Deoksugung Palace erected around the same time, it forms important material for research.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Jongno-gu, Seoul

Designation

Historic Site · 사적