Taean Seungeon-ri Funeral Bier

The Seungeon-ri bier, handed down in the village of Seungeon-ri, is a late Joseon-period funeral bier measuring 2.2m in length, 1m in width and 1.5m in height, similar in form to a palanquin. Its wood carvings — including the dragon-head panel carved with the faces of a blue dragon and a yellow dragon, the phoenix-head ornament depicting a phoenix's head, and the dragon-head ornament carved with a dragon's head — are brightly coloured; in particular, the figure of the messenger of the afterlife riding a haetae, a mythical lion-like guardian creature, above the ridge of the roof is so finely carved that it is of high art-historical value. It is said, though not confirmed, that the Seungeon-ri bier was used for the state funeral of Yi Seon, Prince Wanhwa (1868–1880), son of Emperor Gojong, the twenty-sixth monarch of Joseon; what is certain is that it was used for the funeral of Kim Byeong-nyeon (1855–1927), who had retired to Anmyeondo Island. It is said that the village of Seungeon-ri has kept the bier in its care ever since. After being designated a Chungcheongnam-do Cultural Heritage Material, the bier was kept in a protective shelter built by the county, but recently, owing to conservation concerns, it has been placed in temporary storage in the storage facility of the Donghak Peasant Revolution Memorial Hall following conservation treatment.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Taean, Chungnam

Designation

Cultural Heritage Material · 문화유산자료