Press Releases
Cultural Heritage Administration
Feb 09,2023
The National Palace Museum of Korea Sheds New Light
on the Scientific Achievements of the Joseon Dynasty
-The Scientific Achievement of the Joseon Dynasty Gallery Reopened and Availablefor Public Viewing Starting December 27 (Tue) -
On December 27, 2022, the NationalPalace Museum of Korea (Director: Kim In Kyu), an affiliate of the CulturalHeritage Administration of Korea, will reopen the permanent ScientificAchievement of the Joseon Dynasty Gallery following majorrenovations. The remodeled gallery will present artifacts capturing the spiritof the scientific pursuits of the Joseon royal court, including the StoneConstellation Chart (cheonsangyeolchabunyajido gakseok; NationalTreasure), the second oldest of its kind in the world, and the Self-strikingWater Clock (jagyeongnu; National Treasure) from Changdeokgung Palacethat is introduced to the general public for the first time.
The renovated gallery features anexhibition themed on gwansang susi* (observing the sky and marking theseasons) that highlights the museum’s extensive collection of importantastronomical instruments. It focuses on providing viewers with a simpleexplanation of the meanings and operating principles of these scientific andcultural artifacts that otherwise might be too specialized and convoluted tograsp. Moreover, a separate space has been set aside to display the StoneConstellation Chart, which is highly significant yet proved difficult to viewin the past due to spatial and technological limitations. Viewers will be ableto thoroughly examine the chart and enjoy the related immersive content. Theexhibition displays a total of forty-five artifacts, including three nationaltreasures and six treasures.*Gwansang susi: The practice of observing celestial bodies, setting solarterms, dates, and times based on these observations, and distributing thisinformation to the people.
The newly remodeled ScientificAchievement of the Joseon Dynasty Gallery consists of three main sections: I.The Joseon Ruling Ideology and Astronomy; II. Astronomy Projects of the JoseonRoyal Court; and III. Astronomical Instruments of the Joseon Dynasty. The firstsection “The Joseon Ruling Ideology and Astronomy” highlights how gwansangsusi, the foremost duty of Joseon kings, was a major component of the stateideology and an important means for governance. Celestial globes (honcheonuior seongiokhyeong) have been considered an emblem of royal authoritysince ancient times. Ceremonial swords called ingeom produced by theroyal court were engraved with the Big Dipper, symbolizing the sovereign, andtwenty-eight constellations. The pedestal (National Treasure) of therainfall-measuring instrument at Imunwon Hall in Changdeokgung Palace was adevice for governance used to help people farm and charge them appropriatetaxes.
The second section, “Astronomy Projectsof the Joseon Royal Court,” introduces astronomy-related projects sponsored bythe royal court and the related outcomes, such as the publication of almanacs.King Sejong supported astronomical observations and the study of calendarsystems. During his reign, a unique calendar system that enabled people toidentify the local time in Hanyang (present-day Seoul) was established based onthe study of Chinese and Islamic calendar systems. The publication ofastronomical books continued from the early through late Joseon period, asdemonstrated by Abstracted Astronomical Book (Cheonmunryucho) andThe Revised and Enlarged Edition of the Comparative Review of Records andDocuments (Jeungbo munheon bigo). Calendrical books and almanacswere published as well. This section of the exhibition features a calendarcalled naeyongsamseo that was designed for the exclusive use of theroyal court. It also presents types of annual almanacs such as daetongnyeonkand siheollyeok. Each of these almanacs has a summary of the yearand covers twelve months, with each month broken down by date. The traces ofuse remaining in the almanacs show how they were applied like present-day deskcalendars or dairies to mark major anniversaries. However, unlike today’s deskcalendars or dairies, Joseon-era almanacs also related unlucky times when oneshould avoid certain tasks or events as along with good times to do things.They were sometimes used to forecast good or ill fortune. The interactiveinformation kiosk on a siheollyeok used by an official in 1772 allowsviewers to thoroughly explore how calendars were applied during the Joseonperiod.
When hemispherical sundials were firstproduced, they were installed in the royal palaces and at busy spots in frontof Gwanghwamun Gate and in Jongno. For the sake of illiterate people, each hourwas engraved with an animal. There is also a portable hemispherical sundial tencentimeters long. In addition to a hemispherical dial to read the time, it containsa compass so that the direction can be determined from anywhere.
Water clocks could be used to tell thetime at night. None of the original self-striking water clocks have survived.The self-striking water clock at Changdeokgung Palace was composed of threevessels providing aregulated flow of water and two long cylindrical tanks that captured the waterflowing from the vessels. In the third section of the exhibition is thebead-releasing section of a self-striking water clock and its time-announcingbell that were excavated in Insa-dong in 2021.Towards the end of the thirdsection of the exhibition is a separate room displaying two pieces: the StoneConstellation Chart (National Treasure) and the Stone Constellation Chart(Treasure) that was later reproduced based on it. At the entrance of the space,viewers can thoroughly explore these stone constellation charts through aninteractive information kiosk. Once they enter the room, they can appreciatethe artifacts along with immersive content. In particular, the astronomical mapon the stone constellation charts is recreated using immersive images that areconnected to the charts. This effort to link the actual artifacts to immersiveimages at close range is particularly noteworthy.The renovation of theScientific Achievement of the Joseon Dynasty Gallery is a result of themuseum’s multi-pronged efforts to enhance the convenience for visitors. As acase in point, informational video clips and interactive kiosks are providedthroughout the exhibition halls for visitors who wish to learn more about theartifacts. It is not easy to understand how astronomical instruments such asthe sun-and-stars time-determining instrument (ilseong jeongsiui) or the time- andseason-determining instrument using the locations of the constellations (pyeonghonui)operate just based on the explanatory panels. If you see kiosks providing videoclips, please take a look at them. They will satisfy your curiosity about theoperating principles of these astronomical instruments. In the beginning of thegallery is the section “The Science Culture of the Joseon Dynasty at YourFingertips” that presents four tactile objects (a celestial globe, pedestal fora rain gauge, hemispherical sundial, and long cylindrical tank for aself-striking water clock) for visually impaired visitors. Moreover,large-print information panels are installed throughout the exhibition halls tohelp elderly visitors and others who require it. The exhibition is alsodesigned to allow visitors to appreciate scientific cultural heritage by usingtheir different senses. Standing in front of the rain gauge pedestal, you canhear the sound of rain, while in front of the self-striking water clock you canhear the sound of a drum and bell that announce the time.TheNational Palace Museum of Korea is striving to live up to its exhibition motto“elevating dignity and lowering barriers” through this remodeling of theScientific Achievement of the Joseon Dynasty Gallery. It will continue to makeefforts to improve its exhibitions so that royal cultural heritage can be lovedby Korean citizens and accessed easily and comfortably.Division: The National Palace Museum of Korea
Exhibition & Publicity Division
Contact person:Lim Kyoung-hee (02-3701-7631) Kim Jae-eun (02-3701-7632)