Baekseokdongcheon Garden in Buam-dong, Seoul

Baekseokdongcheon Garden in Buam-dong, Seoul, is a site associated with a byeolseo, a private country retreat, built in the 1800s close to the capital's walled city. Building sites — including a sarangchae, the men's quarters, and an anchae, the women's main quarters — and a pond survive amid fine natural scenery, and nearby stand rocks inscribed with the characters '白石洞天' (Baekseokdongcheon) and '月巖' (Wolam). Set at the rear of Baegaksan (Bugaksan) Mountain, facing Bukhansan Mountain across the scenic Baeksagol Valley, it is one of the dongcheon (洞天: a scenic spot enclosed by mountains and streams). It is said to be called 'Baekseokdongcheon' because of the many white stones and the beautiful scenery of the area; 'Baekseok' is said to derive from the famous Chinese mountain Baekseoksan (白石山), and 'Baekseoksan' is in turn interpreted as having been conceived with reference to 'Baegaksan (Bugaksan)'. Among the byeolseo that survive in the Seoul area are Seokpajeong Villa, the retreat of Kim Heung-geun; Okhojeong, the retreat of Kim Jo-sun; and the villa of Hwang Yun-myeong (the Seongbuk-dong Villa, Seoul). Baekseokdongcheon has a hexagonal pavilion and a pond centred on a north–south axis, and is divided into a sarangchae section and an anchae section set on a raised platform about 3.78 m high. Today only the foundations of the sarangchae and pavilion remain on their building sites, along with part of a wall and stone embankment. Baekseokdongcheon is valued as a refined example of garden design that fully retains the elements of a byeolseo — its building sites, pond and inscribed rocks well preserved, together with a clear sense of distance from the village.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Jongno-gu, Seoul

Designation

Scenic Site · 명승