Gyeolseonghyanggyo Local Confucian School

A hyanggyo is a local educational institution established by the state to hold memorial rites for Confucius and other sages and to educate and morally instruct the local populace. It is not known exactly when Gyeolseonghyanggyo was first built, but it is said to have been founded in 1010, the first year of King Hyeonjong of Goryeo. It was repaired in 1623, the first year of King Injo of Joseon, in 1674, the fifteenth year of King Hyeonjong, and in 1808, the eighth year of King Sunjo, and underwent major renovation in 1923, giving it its present appearance. The buildings follow the jeonhakhumyo layout — education at the front, ritual space at the rear — but without an outer three-door gate (oesammun): the Myeongnyundang, the hall of instruction, stands directly at the front, with the Daeseongjeon, the shrine for rites, behind it. The Daeseongjeon measures three bays across the front and three bays deep, with a gable roof that forms the shape of the character 人 (person) when viewed from the side. Inside are enshrined the spirit tablets of Confucius and other sages of China and Korea. There are also the Dongjae and Seojae, dormitories for students, along with a storehouse for ritual vessels, a red spiked gate (hongsalmun), and an inner three-door gate (naesammun). During the Joseon period the school received land, servants and books from the state to teach students, but today its educational function has disappeared and only its function as a site of ritual remains.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Hongseong, Chungnam

Designation

Provincial Monument · 시도기념물