Suyeol Stele

This stele stands in the village of Suyeolpyeong, and honours the virtuous resolve of a woman of the mid-Joseon period known as Lady Oh. When the Jeongyu War — the second Japanese invasion, which broke out in 1597, the thirtieth year of King Seonjo — reached the Jangsu region, Japanese soldiers plundered and set fire to houses one after another, and frequently raped women. Lady Oh, wife of Yang Sa-mu of the village of Hwapyeong, was assaulted one morning by Japanese soldiers who burst in and seized her by the breast. She cut off her own breast with a knife and flung it at their faces, crying out, "You barbarians, lower than beasts! If you covet breasts so much, take this and go back to your own country!" Overwhelmed by her dignity, the soldiers fled at once, and Lady Oh, having lost a great deal of blood, collapsed on the spot and died. When this story was later reported to the court, the government ordered that a stele be erected in her honour. The stele, which stands inside a stele pavilion, has its body set upon a low, square base stone, with the top edge of the body rounded. The front bears a long inscription giving the stele's title, and the back is inscribed "Suyeolpyeong"; from that time the village, previously called "Hwapyeong," came to be known instead as "Suyeolpyeong." The inscription was written in the calligraphy of Nakseon-gun U, a grandson of King Seonjo.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Jangsu, Jeonbuk

Designation

Cultural Heritage Material · 문화유산자료