Samcheok Cheokjudonghaebi and Pyeongsutochan Stele

These are two steles associated with Heo Mok (1595–1682), who served as magistrate of Samcheok in the second year of King Hyeonjong of Joseon (1661). Heo Mok furthered the development of Neo-Confucianism and devoted himself to the study of the various philosophical schools and the Confucian classics, and is said to have been particularly accomplished in ritual studies. The Cheokjudonghaebi stele stands on Yukhyangsan Hill in Jeongsang-ri. It was originally erected on Mallido Island in front of Jeongna Harbour, but when it was damaged it was moved to its present site in the 36th year of King Sukjong (1710). At that time this region suffered such severe waves that seawater rose as far as the village, and floods caused the residents great harm. Troubled by this, Heo Mok personally composed a text charged with mysterious meaning and carved the inscription in his distinctive calligraphy to erect this stele; remarkably, the sea is said to have grown calm thereafter, and the residents suffered no further damage. Because the text was believed to be not only mysterious but also capable of repelling misfortune, it is also known as the 'Toejobi' (tide-repelling stele), and it is all the more celebrated for the extraordinary calligraphy of Heo Mok, who is called the foremost master of seal script in the East. The Pyeongsutochan Stele stands a short distance from the Cheokjudonghaebi and was erected with the same purpose as the Donghaebi. Heo Mok had copied part of a seal-script stele inscribed by Emperor Yu of Hengshan, China, and kept it carved on a wooden block; in the 8th year of the Gwangmu era under Emperor Gojong (1904), by royal command, the royal envoy Gang Hong-dae and the Samcheok county magistrate Jeong Un-seok had it carved onto stone exactly as it was.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Samcheok, Gangwon

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산