Gunjajeong Pavilion

Gunjajeong Pavilion stands in the southern part of the Gobu-ri area, and various legends linking it to the fortunes of Gobu village have long been told about it. Because it sits in the middle of a pond, surrounded on all four sides by lotus flowers, it was known as Yeonjeong, or "Lotus Pavilion." The name is thought to derive from the phrase "yeonhwa ji gunja jaya" (蓮花之君子者也, "the lotus is the gentleman among flowers"), though why the name was later changed from Yeonjeong to Gunjajeong is not known. In 1764, the 40th year of King Yeongjo, Yi Se-hyeong repaired the pavilion; in 1900 Jo Gyu-hui dredged and repaired the pond; reconstruction began in 1901 and was completed in 1905. According to a legend told here, from the middle of the Joseon period onward no talented people emerged from Gobu village, no one passed the state examinations, and magistrates would leave office or be transferred elsewhere within a year of taking up their post. It was said that this was because the lotus pavilion had fallen into ruin, so in 1673, the 14th year of King Hyeonjong, Yi Hu-seon dredged the pond and repaired the pavilion, after which, it is said, talented people began to emerge. There is also a legend that the fortunes of the area were blocked because the local Confucian school (hyanggyo) stood lower than the government office, and so in 1765, the 41st year of King Yeongjo, the magistrate's office (dongheon) was moved to what is now Gobu Elementary School.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Jeongeup, Jeonbuk

Designation

Provincial Tangible Heritage · 시도유형문화유산