Gongbukeon Hall

Gongbukeon Hall is the old house of Dochon Yi Su-hyeong (1435–1528), who resigned his post and withdrew to his home village in seclusion after Grand Prince Suyang's usurpation of the throne in 1455 (the third year of King Danjong), building the house facing north towards Yeongwol, where King Danjong's tomb lies, and living there in hiding for the rest of his life. The name Gongbukeon derives from a saying about its room and its wooden-floored hall: "Call this room the lofty, deep chamber, and call that hall — where I have clasped my hands together all my life to express my reverence for King Danjong — Gongbukeon, the Hall that Clasps its Hands towards the North." The exact date of construction is unknown, but it is thought to date from the mid-15th century, when Dochon retired to the countryside; after its founding it was repaired in 1768 and again in the early 1900s. Gongbukeon Hall measures one bay across the front and two and a half bays along the side: at the innermost, south-facing end is a single bay of heated ondol room, and in front of it, facing north, is a bay and a half of wooden-floored hall. The hall is open only on its north side, with the remaining sides closed off by earthen walls. The hall was extended about half a bay further out than the room, adding depth to the space and making the hall more enclosed, which in turn makes the ondol room an even more solemn, still space, giving it the austere atmosphere of an enclosed shrine niche. The layout — a house built facing north, with the hall and room arranged to open only to the north, three sides walled, and access possible only from the north — is an extremely distinctive arrangement, shaped to suit the particular purpose of expressing the loyalty embodied in the principle that a loyal subject does not serve two kings.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Bonghwa, Gyeongbuk

Designation

Cultural Heritage Material · 문화유산자료