Donggwandaek House, Namyangju

This house is said to have been built by an ancestor eight generations before Yi Deok-seung, father-in-law of the present owner, Yeo Gyeong-gu. It is presumed to date from the 1800s, and stands at the highest point of the village with a hill at its back, giving it a very beautiful surrounding landscape. A distinctive feature is that the main hall, outer hall, gate quarters, servants' quarters and shrine hall are each set apart rather than connected to one another. The main hall lies deep within the property in an L-shaped layout, and together with the storehouse, arranged in an ㄴ-shape around the inner courtyard, forms an overall quadrangular (ㅁ-shaped) layout. There are a straight (一-shaped) outer hall, gate quarters and shrine hall; a shed building once stood in front of the outer hall but has since been demolished and no longer remains. Passing through the main gate one enters the broad outer yard, with the outer hall to the left and the storehouse visible ahead. Passing through the middle gate at the right end of the storehouse leads to the main hall. The main hall is a plain L-shaped building with a kitchen, main bedroom, daecheong and side room, and the placement of a small side room, a back room and a storehouse behind the main bedroom shows the distinctive spatial arrangement typical of upper-class houses in Gyeonggi-do. The outer hall and main hall have platforms of the same height and buildings of the same size, but the outer hall is positioned slightly further forward, so that a visitor entering the main gate cannot immediately perceive the main hall. The shrine hall is set apart on a separate, raised site behind the outer hall. The garden areas of the outer and inner courtyards are open at the front, offering only an unobstructed view without any particular garden features, though a flower bed has been made in the back garden of the main hall. Beyond the small back garden to the east of the kitchen flows a stream, and the trees planted there grow thick, suggesting that this may be an artificially created grove. This heritage site is generally open to visitors, but access may be restricted at times due to the personal circumstances of the owner.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Namyangju, Gyeonggi

Designation

National Folklore Heritage · 국가민속문화유산