• Journal of the Korean Society for Library and Information Science
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• v.20
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• pp.331-403
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• 1991

1. The Purpose of the Research Historical study on the early woodblock printing in Korea has been mostly focussed on woodblock-printed books. Whereas, researches on those who pioneered to develop the advanced culture of the times have been very scant. Meanwhile, extant temple woodblock publications contain well preserved descriptions about Monk-Engravers and Sextons together with respective colophons at the end of the books. These records are very important research materials in the study of woodblock printing history and are also very useful source materials for discernment in conducting historical research about woodblock-printed books. Based on these records, this research has revelaed the characteristics of the Engrevers and realities of engraving activities, and by doing this, has clarified the characteristics of temple woodblock publications, and discussed the historical research about the woodblock-printed-publications by means of the Engravers. 2. Research Methods Temple woodblock publications with colophons in the nation's major libraries have been directly investigated and 3,059 Engravers were identified in 510 different woodblock-printed books, based on which this research and analysis have been conducted. 3. Research Results As a result of the research the followings have been clarified. A The Engravers' status composition and the motivation of engraving. B. The realities and tendencies of the Engravers' activities. C. The characteristics of the times found in the Engravers' lists. D. Historical research methods through the names of the Engravers.

• SUVANNABHUMI
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• v.2 no.2
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• pp.1-28
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• 2010

This paper offers a brief introduction to Vietnamese folk paintings. The discussion compares Vietnamese folk paintings with the Korean folk painting tradition. Among the main purposes of this paper is the exploration of directions for future research on Vietnamese folk paintings. Vietnamese folk paintings, although extensively influenced by their Chinese tradition of minjian nianhua (folk New Year pictures), form an independent tradition, reflecting the local lifestyle and religious practices of Vietnam. However, compared to Korea or Japan, China remains the dominant source of influence for Vietnamese folk paintings. They were either created using a combination of painting and woodblock printing techniques, which was also the case with minjian nianhua, or using multicolor woodblock printing techniques. In cities like Hang Chong, the combination of painting and woodblock printing techniques was used mainly, following the customary practice in Yangliuqing in Tianjin, China, in which colors were added to the drawing printed from the woodblock. Meanwhile, folk paintings produced in rural areas such as Dong Ho are wholly color woodblock prints, similar to minjian nianhua from Yangjiabu in Weifang. In Lang Sinh, simple drawings, intended for casual purposes, were also created using the combination of woodblock printing and painting techniques. Folk paintings produced in cities and rural areas were distinct from each other, not just in techniques, but also in terms of style and theme. Vietnamese folk paintings show a certain degree of thematic similarity with Joseon folk paintings. This is mainly due to the fact that the two countries' folk paintings developed and evolved in parallel with their Chinese counterparts, minjian nianhua. Also noteworthy is the fact that Vietnamese folk paintings, while they share the simplicity and candidness of Joseon folk paintings, are at the same time somewhat more decorative than the latter. For best results, future research on Vietnamese folk paintings should be conducted together with research on minjian nianhua. Traditional pigments constitute an important area of research in this field. Attention should be also paid to the religious paintings of ethnic minorities in Vietnam, as they are discovered in the future.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.36 no.1
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• pp.28-36
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• 2020

The storage environment of a Japanese woodblock print collection was assessed for organic acids. The active air sampling method was used to collect organic acid emissions in the low microgram range from areas of a selected woodblock print with different pigments, following which an off-gassing mitigation strategy based on the fan filter unit(FFU) system was investigated. Research findings revealed that the off-gassing behavior of woodblock prints is significantly impacted by storage practices and to a lesser degree by the pigments. The FFU system can be used as a mitigation strategy, but the permanence of the results depends on the storage conditions.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.37 no.3
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• pp.289-301
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• 2021

When investigating old, printed documents, determining whether a work is printed on a woodblock or using a movable metal type is crucial. It is because the history of printing in Korea and across the world relies on determining the relevant printing invention used and the time of use of the movable metal type. Deciphering details from woodblock and metal prints requires various kinds of information regarding the imprint and the work's printing background, such as information on the characters in the printed document, the outline of the pages, the type of ink used, the production period of the ink, and the production period of the Korean paper. Analyzing such information can generally reveal the production period and the methods used on the old document. However, as such information is not documented systematically, relying on the researcher's judgment based on their experience and perception becomes inevitable. This study conducted an experimental investigation of the printing characteristics of woodblock prints using a replicated woodblock of the Wanpanbon edition of the Shimcheongjeon. Subsequently, the various phenomena and characteristics appearing on the woodblock prints were documented for future reference to determine the printing method of old documents. Finally, woodblock novels without an imprint may be used as a reference to estimate the printing dates by determining the degree of wear on the woodblock.

• Korean Journal of Heritage: History & Science
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.50-64
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• 2022

This thesis is a study on the woodblock of Donguibogam by Jeolla Gamyeong(Wanyoung Woodblock). It was registered as a tangible cultural property in Jeollabuk-do in 2005. The purpose of this article is to determine the current status and value of the Donguibogam Wanyoung Woodblock. Jeonju Hyanggyo's Wanyoung Woodblock was used to print books in Gamyeong, Jeolla Province. Currently, ten kinds of woodblocks are preserved. In 1987, a wooden bookshelf was installed and preserved in "Jangpangak" of Jeonju Hyanggyo. It is now preserved and managed at Chonbuk National University Museum. Among the ten woodblocks, the Wanyoung woodblock of Donguibogam is presumed to be a woodblock of a book printed by Jeolla Gamyeong in 1814. The value of Donguibogam has long been recognized domestically and internationally. Donguibogam, compiled in 1610, was first published in 1613 in the wood type of Gaeju Gapinja. Following its publication, its value was recognized not only in Joseon but also in China and Japan. In 2009, the first edition of Donguibogam was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage. Accordingly, Donguibogam has been recognized for various aspects, but little research has been conducted on the woodblocks that printed Donguibogam. Therefore, this paper analyzes the current status of the Wanyoung woodblock of Donguibogam, aiming to enhance its meaning and value. King Seonjo presented the ideals of public health care and preventive medicine when compiling Donguibogam, which was distributed according to his instructions. For this reason, the first edition of Donguibogam was registered as a UNESCO World Heritage. It can be said that the production of Donguibogam woodblocks was an important tool in realizing Joseon's ideals through national dissemination. Furthermore, the woodblock of Donguibogam represents the spirit of thinking about the people, going beyond the purpose of printing, and it was meaningful in the spread of medical knowledge among the people. In this article, I will examine the overall contents of the Wanyoung woodblock of Donguibogam to enhance its meaning and value. The results show that the Wanyoung woodblock of Donguibogam is meaningful in that it is almost the only one produced and stored by Gamyeong. Moreover, Wanyoung woodblocks are meaningful in that perfect editions could be preserved and disseminated for a long time, unlike other wood-type prints.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.37 no.5
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• pp.590-605
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• 2021

The history of printing technology in Korea is studied by investigating existing ancient documents and records and comparing accumulated data and knowledge. Cultural property research requires non-destructive testing and observation with the naked eye or aided by a microscope. Researchers' experience and knowledge are required even though they cannot guarantee the outcome. For ancient documents and records that are presumed to consist of woodblock printing, wood type printing, metal type printing, or their combinations, each researcher draws various opinions and conclusions. This often causes confusion and divides the opinions of ordinary citizens and field specialists. Among them, the criteria for judging ancient documents or books printed using woodblock and metal movable material are ambiguous. Academic research on the development history of printing technology in ancient Korea has been stagnant, and conflicts among researchers have also erupted. Involvement of national investigative agencies not specialized in cultural properties has exacerbated the situation. In this study, we investigated printing characteristics that are likely to serve as more objective judgment criteria by quantitatively analyzing the experiments of retrieving several sheets of Korean paper (Hanji) using a replicated Hunminjeongeum (訓民正音) woodblock and quantitatively analyzing the images of the printed papers. In addition, the validity and questions for the typical phenomena presented as a method for distinguishing between woodblock and metal print are reviewed. We investigated the possibility of developing new objective judgement criteria through quantitative analysis using image analysis and investigating the printing characteristics of Korean paper through a reproduction experiment of woodblock printing.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.35 no.6
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• pp.621-630
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• 2019

A woodblock softening process using saltwater was investigated in order to reduce the cracks and distortion caused by the woodblock-making process and to make the woodblock softer and sculpturing easier. Although anatomical studies of woodblocks have been ongoing for years, little work has been done on softening treatments using natural materials. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to investigate the change in the physical properties of wood treated with saturated brine and the effect of salt on metal nails found embedded in woodblocks. After boiling for twelve h each in water and saturated brine, the saltwater-boiled specimens have longer drying times than the water-boiled specimens. Further, it was observed that salt particles penetrated the cells in the wood. As a result of exposing the copper and iron nails, which were stuck in each specimen, to a high humidity environment, the weight of the saltwater-boiled specimens increased due to the hygroscopicity of the salt. Corrosion of the nails also occurred. This result is similar to the problem that appears on the edge of a woodblock. In conclusion, it was shown that salt in the wood cells affects the corrosion of metal embedded in the wood.

• (The)Study of the Eastern Classic
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• no.68
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• pp.473-508
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• 2017

This article aims to compare the honorific expressions in Different Versions of . Cheonuisogam, a version in classical Chinese, has two different versions of translation in Korean, Cheonuisogameonhae: a hand-written version and a woodblock-printed version. A hand-written version was written in 1755 and a woodblock-printed version was published in 1756. This article covered two themes in different versions: honorific subject-particles '-gyeoosyeo(-겨오셔)'/'-gyeoʌosyeo()' and prefinal-ending '-sʌp-(--). The honorific subject-particles '-gyeoosyeo(-겨오셔)' appeared more in a hand-written version than a woodblock-printed version. The '-gyeoʌosyeo()' is not found in a woodblock-printed version. The prefinal-ending '-sʌp-(--) has three functions: agent modesty of objects, speaker modesty of agent, speaker modesty of listener. The '-sʌp-(--), in Cheonuisogameonhae, has mainly function as a speaker modesty. The '-sʌp-(--) appeared more in a hand-written version than a woodblock-printed version.

• Journal of Conservation Science
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• v.38 no.2
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• pp.96-108
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• 2022

To understand the process of publication and distribution of ancient Korean novels under the Joseon dynasty and Japanese occupation, collecting information on the publication of various printed materials and estimating their publication date through various methods is extremely important. In this study, the characteristics and differences that appeared in the woodblock printing process were investigated using image comparison among editions of the Honggildongjeon (Tale of Honggildong) of Wanpanbon (完板本) (published in the Jeonju region) with other commercial editions of the ancient Korean novels. Additionally, the publication year of each edition was estimated. Printed images of different versions were compared with those of a recently discovered original series version and the changes in the process of carving replacement woodblocks were investigated and summarized. Various phenomena, such as differences in fonts, borderline shapes and integrity of printed characters, appearing in woodblock prints provided useful information for determining chronological relationships between the prints and estimating the approximate publication year for each edition. The various characteristics of woodblock printing obtained through this study are expected to serve as a reference for estimating the relationship between the printing method and the approximate publication date of old books and paper-based printed historical records.

• (The)Study of the Eastern Classic
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• no.71
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• pp.231-258
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• 2018

This paper examines the differences of two different versions of "Cheonuisogameonhae" in terms of stylistics and investigates factors affecting the differences. The interpretations between the woodblock edition and the manuscript edition might be different depending on assumed range of readership, and the stylistic differences between two editions might be different depending on the possibility of extension of the reading population. Thus, this paper examines how stylistic effects are reflected in inter-relations between a translator as a speaker and readers as listeners according to speaker intentions. In Chapter 2, the stylistic differences reflected from two difference editions are examined in terms of the expression of a writer's respect, emotions, and formal consciousness to readers. The expressions of a writer's respect are more clearly emerged in the manuscript edition than in the woodblock edition. The honorific expression of a subject, '-gyeo?dsyeo', and the honorific expression of a writer, '-s?p-', are more frequently used in the manuscript edition than in the woodblock edition. In order to express positive emotions, exclamation endings are used in the manuscript edition, which shows the writer's strong emotional sympathy with readers' words and behaviors. On the other hand, in the woodblock edition, '-이' is used after names in order to treat rebellious subjects and people involved in conspiracy contemptuously by the use of informal forms. In addition, affirmative sentences in the manuscript edition and double negative sentences in the woodblock edition are used respectively, which intends to strongly emphasize a king's will and the appropriateness of the will. The writer's formal consciousness to readers are found in the way of writing names of people and places in Korean. Chinese characters are generally used two show formal consciousness; thus, names of people and places are expressed in Chinese characters in the woodblock edition. In Chapter 3, factors that made the stylistic differences between two editions are examined. The factors causing stylistic differences are examined in terms of the purpose of the interpretation, the class and range of the reading population, a writer's attitudes toward readers, and the face-to-fact situation of a writer and readers.