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Throughout much of traditional Asian culture, including
China and Korea, rite has been highly important, and
in modern society preserving rite carries with it the
meaning of maintaining basic social order. There are
a number of rituals which are considered important forms
of rite, and the most significant for these in Korea
are the Jongmyo and the Sajik rituals.Jongmyo is the
term used for a place where memorial services are performed
for deceased kings, and Sajik is the term for a place
where services for the Gods of Earth and Crops are performed.
There rituals are symbols for nations themselves in
that they guarantee order and successful ruling of the
nation.
Consequently, due to the importance of these rituals,
the Jongmyo and Sajik shrines where the rituals are
performed are classic in their architectural grace,
detail and beauty.
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Although such facilities existed in Korea
as early as the Three Kingdoms Period, those that remain
today in Seoul are from the Joseon Dynasty(1392-1910).
The first Jongmyo of the dynasty was erected in Seoul
in 1395, and the main hall, Jeongjeon, contained 7 rooms,
One room was used for the memorial tablets of one king
and his queen. The 4th king of the dynasty, King Sejong,
had an additional hall, the Yeongnyeongjeon("Hall
of Eternal comfort"), built beside the main hall
to house all of the tablets which could not be housed
in the main hall. With successive reigns and an increasingly
large number of memorial tablets, however , additions
had to be made to the facilities. |
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Rooms were added from west to east until there was
a total of 19. The original Jongmyo, however, was destroyed
in 1592, and the Jongmyo which exist today was built
in 1601. Jongmyo was located to the left of the main
palace, Gyeongbok, and Sajik was built to the right
(as viewed from the king's throne), a tradition of planning
which goes back to ancient China. The main hill of the
Jongmyo complex is called Yeungbong, and from it a number
of smaller hills extend southward until they encompass
the Jongmyo compound of the Jeongjeon, Yeongnyeongjeon
and other auxiliary buildings. They were built according
to terrain, however, and in totaliay they appear to
the modern eye not to be very balanced in distribution.
The Jeongjeon is comprised of 19 identical rooms, and
they are extremely simple with no ornamentation. However,
the building as a whole is both grand and impressive,
and the twenty thick, round pillars sufficiently project
the dignity and grandeur of royalty. In front of the
Jeongjeon is an impressive 150-meter-long, 100-meter-wide
elevated stone yard called "Woldae" which
is used during ceremonies by musicians, dancers and
other participants. The large stone blocks which compose
the yard provide a striking and solemn atmosphere as
they lay in silence before the Jeongjeon, and the yard
greatly complements the architecture. The Jongmyo ritual
itself has been designated an Important Intangible Cultural
property by the government not only for its historical
importance but for the splendor of the music, dance
and ceremony.
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National Heritage 
World Cultural Heritage
