• Journal of the Korea Furniture Society
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• v.21 no.1
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• pp.17-25
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• 2010

Three buildings -Jibokjae, Hyubgildang and Palujung- are connected each other and consist of a library and reception complex for royal kings at Kyungbok Palace in Seoul. Jibokjae and Hyubgildang were known to have been moved from Changdok Palace in A.D. 1891. No construction records have been known for Palujung. In 2004, during repair of three buildings, a dendrochronological analysis was conducted to examine their building histories. We took 67 wood samples for dendrochronological analysis; 20 from Jibokjae, 37 Hyubgildang and 10 Palujung, respectively. The results showed that the felling dates of Jibokjae and Hyubgildang woods were A.D. 1877-1879/1880, indicating original construction of two buildings at early 1880s. Felling dates of Palujung were 1886-1889/1890, those of roof filling timbers 1890 and the connection part between Hyubgildang and Jibokjae 1886, confirming 1891's movement of Hyubgildang and Jibokjae and adding a new building, Palujung.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.40
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• pp.207-241
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• 2007

This paper investigates the royal collection of paintings and calligraphy during King Gojong's (高宗) reign (1897~1907) based on the function of the Jipgyeong-dang Hall (緝敬堂), situated at "sleeping realm (寢殿)," Gyeongbok Palace. Using the surviving palace records and art works this study argues that the date of building the hall is approximately confined to the year of 1890. Not being matched with the general opinion that the Jipgyeong-dang Hall was used for the official meeting with envoys, this hall functioned as the main place for royal audience and the storehouse for archives. The role of Gojong as collector and patron was essential not only to the maintenance of the collection but also to the strengthening of royal authority just before the Japanese annexation in 1910. The specific titles of the collection at this hall can be verified through the Catalogue of the Books, Paintings, and Calligraphy Exposed to the Sun at Jipgyeong-dang Hall (緝敬堂曝曬書目) dating to the nineteenth century. The records of the catalogue inform us that more than 1,000 paintings and pieces of calligraphy, inkrubbings from old steles, manuals for painting, and encyclopedia concerning art theories from Korea, China, and Japan were preserved there. The collection of Jipgyeong-dang Hall resulted from Gojong's policy to foster the collection of contemporary Chinese and Japanese art works and various catalogues. Standing behind the Gyeongbok Palace, the Jibok-jae Hall (集玉齋) also preserved the diverse sources of practical learning, as did the Jipgyong-dang Hall for Gojong. The enormous royal collections by Gojong might have been constructed in accordance with the royal artistic taste and the artistic milieu of the late Joseon period. The surviving royal catalogues confirm this assumption as documentary evidence.