• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.50 no.1
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• pp.42-57
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• 2017

The Joseon Dynasty (1392~1910) had a long tradition of making official seals to commemorate the granting of official royal titles, including posthumous honorary titles, to its kings, queens, crown princes and queen dowagers. These royal seals were typically gold-plated or made of jade. After the death of its holder, each seal would be stored in the royal seal depository in the Royal Ancestral Shrine. Extensive efforts were made to restore the traditions and culture of the royal family of Joseon during the reign of King Sukjong (r. 1674~1720). In 1705, discussions were held about the royal ceremonial objects, including the royal seals, stored in the Royal Ancestral Shrine, resulting in the reproduction of a set of accessories related with the storage of royal seals and ten golden royal seals which had been lost during wars or had yet to be made. With these reproductions, each shrine chamber of the Royal Ancestral Shrine would have had at least one seal. The details of the reproduction project were meticulously recorded in The Royal Protocol by the Directorate for the Restoration of Golden Royal Seals("金寶改造都監儀軌"). Given that the restoration project was the single event that led to the reproduction of all the golden royal seals, it is reasonable to conclude that the directorate had fulfilled a historically significant function. In this study, the main discussion is focused on the establishment of the directorate and the storage and management of the damaged royal seals. The discussion includes the manufacturing process of the golden seals, for which The Royal Protocol is compared with other similar documents in order to gain more detailed knowledge of the measurements of the turtle knob, the lost-wax casting technique, the gold plating with mercury amalgamation technique, and other ornamentation techniques. The discussion also covers the activities of the artisans who made the royal seals, based on a study of the royal protocols; the styles of the artifacts, based on an examination of the remaining examples; and the techniques used by the Directorate for the Restoration of Golden Royal Seals to produce the royal seals in 1705.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.42 no.1
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• pp.72-87
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• 2009

This research is insect diversity analysis on the basis of survey results and bibliographies of Hongdo Island, Mts. Seoraksan, Hallasan, Daeamsan & Daeusan, Hyangnobong peak & Geonbongsan nature reserves and Dokdo Protected Natural Area among 10 designated nature reserves. The Mt. Hallasan nature reserve has 1,867 species in 22 orders and shows the highest species diversity. The species diversities of Mt. Seoraksan, Mt. Hyangnobong peak & Geonbongsan, Hongdo Island, Mt. Daeamsan & Daeusan, and Dokdo Protected Natural Area reveal 1,604 species in 19 orders, 704 species in 18 orders, 474 species in 19 orders, 468 species in 16 orders, and 114 species in 11 orders, respectively, in descending order. The order Lepidoptera shows as dominant taxa in Hongdo, Seoraksan, Hallasan, Hyangnobong peak & Geonbongsan, whereas the order Coleoptera as subdominant taxa in these areas. On the other hand, in Mt. Daeamsan & Daeusan, and Dokdo Protected Natural Area, the order Coleoptera appears as dominant taxa whereas the order Lepidoptera as subdominant taxa. The order Ephemeroptera has been shown the highest species diversity in Seoraksan which is reported to 25 species, Odonata in Hallasan to 28, Dermaptera in Seoraksan to 9, Orthoptera in Hallasan to 51, Hemiptera in Hallasan to 175, Homoptera in Seoraksan to 126, Hymenoptera in Hallasan to 183, and Diptera in Hallasan to 206. The species diversity is generally poor in Daeamsan & Daeusan, Hyangnobong peak & Geonbongsan, and Dokdo Protected Natural Area. Maybe this result is caused by the lack of various academic surveys compared to the other areas. It is needed to study systematic academic investigation on insect in the nature reserve areas in Korea, and to plan appropriate management and conservation on natural environment considering biodiversity of each nature reserve area.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.55 no.1
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• pp.35-50
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• 2022

The Korean cultural heritage protection act, enacted in 1962, is known to have been enacted in imitation of the Japanese cultural heritage protection act. The Japanese law differs from the current law dealing with intangible cultural heritage, folklore materials, and buried cultural properties. The Japanese law was enacted in consultation with the GHQ, and reflected the historical issues at the time of the enactment. Recently, in Japan, GHQ documents have been released and so research on the cultural heritage protection act is carried out. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the meaning and achievements of the Japanese cultural heritage protection act before comparing it with the Korean law. GHQ stipulated the emperor as a symbolic entity in the Japanese constitution and prescribed the country as a liberal democracy. Influenced by this, the cultural heritage protection act was enacted to identify the people's cultural heritage. Accordingly, the cultural heritage protection committee is a private and independent organization in Japan. The committee designates cultural heritage assets, and it operates as the national museum and the cultural heritage research institute. This system was a part of policy changes shifting cultural heritage management to the private sector. Since many cultural heritages are associated with the imperial family, museums were managed by the imperial family. Meanwhile, the Japanese house of councillors persuaded GHQ, which was negative about including intangible cultural heritage in the cultural heritage protection act. The purpose of this idea was to provide the system of the government support for Japanese imperial court music and dance. In addition, folk materials were included with the consent of the GHQ in that they represent the cultural heritages and the academic achievements of the people at the time in Japan. According to the Korean Law, the subject of designation of cultural heritage is the government, and the cultural heritage committee acts as an advisory body with its limited functions. In the early days, the committee confused the concept of intangible cultural heritage and folklore materials. This was because the concepts of cultural property was borrowed from Japanese law and applied to the Korean law without a full understanding. In response, the cultural heritage committee urged the ministry to investigate the current situation in Japan. The cultural heritage committee, mainly consisting of folklore scholars, was confused about the concepts of intangible cultural heritage and folklore materials, but the concept became clear when the enforcement regulations of the cultural heritage protection Act was enacted in 1964.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.56 no.3
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• pp.6-20
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• 2023

The World Heritage Subcommittee of the Cultural Heritage Administration which examine The World Heritage Subcommittee of the Cultural Heritage Administration which The World Heri The World Heritage Subcommittee of the Cultural Heritage Administration which examined the Placenta Chamber of King Sejong's Princes applied for the world heritage priority list in 2020 recommended expanding it to the royal placenta chambers of Joseon distributed nationwide for successive registration instead of registering the Seongju placenta chamber only. On account of that, the issue of selecting items has become one of the important topics to be discussed in the registration of world heritages. Accordingly, this researcher investigated the subjects of successive registration based on such conditions as excellent universal value, heritage protection and management, authenticity, and completeness among the real estate cultural properties demanded by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee. First, 22 placenta chambers, the real estate cultural properties designated as cultural properties and protected and managed by the state and local governments, are subject to it. Second, it seems that placenta chambers that can be restored through research and historical investigation and become designated as cultural properties can additionally be added. Third, items such as the Seosamneung Royal Tombs built by Lee Wang-jik in the Japanese colonial era or Seongjong Placenta Chamber relocated as an example to realize the completeness of Joseon's Royal Placenta Chambers can be included as well. Meanwhile, many of the items designated as cultural properties are not in the original location, and they can be divided into those that were relocated for the intentions of the Japanese Empire and those that were not. Therefore, the researcher insists that it is necessary to select and add items with which we can understand the historicity in the relocation of placenta chambers during the Japanese colonial era and also to quickly designate those that have not been designated as cultural properties yet. Therefore, regardless of designation as cultural heritage, local governments must promote both restoration and designation and strive to include them in the list of successive registration of world heritages grounded on thorough historical investigation. Moreover, to add them to the list of successive registration of world heritages, the Cultural Heritage Administration and local governments should promote continuous research and genuine restoration of individual placenta chambers.