Jo Oct 2, 2024
Proverbs are known to have been widely used in Korea since the period of Three Kingdoms.
The proverb found in “Samgukyusa” (“Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms”) is the first one in all the existing historical documents. At that time it was called “rion”. After that it was given the name “sangon” and it has been called “soktam” (Korean pronunciation of “proverb”) since the middle years of the feudal Joson dynasty.
The first book of proverbs in Korea is “Sunoji” (by Hong Man Jong) published in the seventeenth century. It has a collection of more than 130 proverbs that were popular in those days. Later, “Paekonhae” (by Ri Ik), “Yangyopki” (by Ri Tok Mu), “Idamsokchan” (by Jong Yak Yong), etc. were compiled.
The first proverb dictionary written in Korean is “Joson Rion” compiled by Choe Won Sik in 1913, which has over 900 proverbs. Later, several proverb books were compiled.
After liberation, “Book of Korean Idioms and Proverbs”, “Book of Korean Proverbs”, “Korean Proverbs”, “Dictionary of Korean Idioms and Proverbs”, etc. were compiled and published.
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Jo Sep 9, 2024
Mausoleum of King Wang Kon (founder of Koryo, 877-943) is in Haeson-ri, Kaesong City, DPRK.
Thanks to the wise guidance of President
On one side before the gate stands a monument to the reconstructed mausoleum of King Wang Kon, founder of Koryo.
Entering through the gate, you face a sacrifice chamber and a monument pavilion. Go past them and you will finally get to the typical Koguryo-style earth-covered stone grave on a raised platform.
At the four corners are stone tigers with offertory tables, stone posts, stone lanterns, etc. before them.
On the second and third platforms, which are situated a little lower than the mausoleum stand apart in two rows eight close vassals including those of merit who contributed to the founding of the dynasty.
The entrance to the grave chamber is a stone door. In the center of the chamber is a bier of large plate stones. On the left and right under the walls are long stands for display of relics and on the eastern, western and northern walls are painted with bamboos and pines.
Many kinds of relics like a jeweled buckle, buckle-shaped metal fittings, a bronze kettle, a gilt-bronze sedentary statue, etc. have been found in the mausoleum and its surroundings.
The magnificently reconstructed mausoleum is making a great contribution to educating the working people and young boys and girls in patriotism, as a priceless historical and cultural site.
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Jo Sep 5, 2024
Kyongdang was a civilian education establishment of the Koguryo age.
Koguryo people, regardless of their high or low social standings, liked learning, so they built a large house called kyongdang for educating young people including children.
The education at kyongdang was aimed at cultivating patriotism and talent, and courage and strength.
Those who attended kyongdang learnt to read and acquired knowledge of history and other fields day and night.
In addition, they built up their physical strength, training in several military arts like archery, horse riding, swordsmanship, etc.
It has been said that many kyongdang graduates with literary and military accomplishments played a big part in the battles against foreign invaders.
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Jo Sep 2, 2024
The 7-storied Hexagonal Tower at Hangbok Temple is situated in Taesong-dong, Taesong District, Pyongyang City, DPRK.
It is 5.35 meters tall.
The planes of major parts of the tower including base stone, platform and body are hexagonal. All the parts are in good harmony and delicately and smoothly shaped.
This unusual hexagonal tower fully displays the appearance of a typical stone tower of the Koryo age. This precious national heritage is in good preservation and care, demonstrating the excellent stone architecture of the Korean people.
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Jo Aug 10, 2024
Kirigocha is a semi-automatic machine for distance measurement.
According to “Sejongsillok” (Chronicles of King Sejong), kirigocha was first used in March, 1441, which means that it was used for measuring distances in Korea in the mid-fifteenth century.
No records at the time of building it have been found. Instead, its structure is described in the book “Juhaesuyong” written by Hong Tae Yong (1731~1783), a realist and materialist of the eighteenth century.
According to it, two cogwheels that are placed one upon another in the box on a cart engage tightly with the vertical cogwheel attached to the wheels. The rotations of the wheels make the sounds of a bell and a drum, which indicate distances.
In other words, the rolling of the wheels over a half ri (1ri=392.73m) and one ri rings a bell once and several times, respectively, while the drumbeat is heard once after 5 ri and several times after ten ri. The distance is measured in ri according to the sounds of the bell and the drum.
Distance measurement by kirigocha was more accurate than that by a tape measure.
The distance of longitude 1° measured 108 kilometers by kirigocha, which means the measurement error limit is below 3%, compared with the current value 110.95 kilometers. This proves that kirigocha was perfect for measuring distances.
To sum up, kirigocha demonstrates Korean ancestors’ high mathematical talent and creative wisdom.
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Jo Aug 6, 2024
A historical site Puyong Pavilion in Haeju City was built at the beginning of the sixteenth century during the feudal Joson dynasty.
It is a unique architecture built on the stone columns in a lotus pond.
The Puyong Pavilion forms an L-shape with a building called “Unghyang Pavilion”.
The pavilion is supported by tens of columns erected in the middle of a pond which is as large as one thousand several hundred square meters. The columns are standing on the border but no columns in the center, so the whole inside is uninterrupted for parties or something.
The Puyong Pavilion preserves the structural features of a typical pavilion and blends the surrounding environment and architecture, thus demonstrating the excellent building techniques of the Korean ancestors.
The charming scenery of the pavilion which felt like floating gently over the lotus pond gradually became widely known, which developed a saying “Missing the Puyong Pavilion denies that you have been to Haeju”.
The sound of raindrops falling onto the lotus flowers in full bloom in the pond at night was so pleasant to the ear that huge numbers of people gathered there when it was raining. It soon started to be called one of the Eight Scenes of Haeso (Haeso means ‘province with the sea in the west’).
As the scene of the pavilion became the pride of Haeju and one of the Eight Scenes of Haeso, many poems, songs and legends came into being, which are still being passed down.
Though it was severely destroyed during the past Fatherland Liberation War, the Puyong Pavilion was restored to its original state by the earnest instructions of President
The pavilion, which was used as a pleasure resort for feudal rulers in the past, turned into an excellent cultural recreation center for working people under the care of the Workers’ Party of Korea. It now serves as a place for education in patriotism that instills the national pride and self-confidence into the people.
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