Excavation of Joseon Royal Decorative Roof Tiles at Taean Cheongpodae Beach

"Ship Carrying Materials for Use in Samnam Royal Buildings Presumed to Have Sunk"

On the 19th, the National Research Institute of Maritime Cultural Heritage announced that it had excavated a large dragon head-shaped decorative roof tile (Chwidu·鷲頭) and a general statue wearing armor, related to early Joseon royal architecture, from the mudflats of Cheongpodae Beach in Taean, Chungnam, last June.

This is the first time an early Joseon Chwidu has been excavated in an intact form. Chwidu are usually made by dividing the upper and lower parts separately. When placed on the roof, the upper and lower parts are fixed and connected with iron nails. The discovered Chwidu measures 103 cm in height and 83 cm at its widest point. On the dragon’s head, which has wide-open eyes and a large open mouth, a small dragon and spiral incised lines are depicted. The dragon’s face is three-dimensional, realistic, and majestic. The scales, mane, and wrinkles are also intricately expressed, giving a vivid sense of movement. The Maritime Cultural Heritage Institute stated, “It is similar to the main gate decoration (Jeongmun, Chinese Ming and Qing dynasty decorative tiles) of Zhihua Temple (智化寺), a Ming dynasty (1368?1644) temple in China,” and explained, “It has the same form and patterns as the Chwidu placed on Sungnyemun before it was destroyed by fire in 2008.”

The general statue is placed at the very front when decorating the ridge of the eaves with various shaped tiles. The discovered artifact depicts a figure wearing armor, sitting on a pedestal (Jwadae), with hands lightly resting on the knees. It measures 30 cm in height and 22 cm at its widest point. It has a lively sense of movement, and the scales on the armor are delicately expressed. The form and pattern expression method are similar to early Joseon general statues excavated from Gyeongbokgung Palace and Hoeamsa Temple site.

Chwidu and general statues were also found in the mudflats of Cheongpodae Beach in 2019. In September of that year, a local resident digging for clams discovered a lower part of a Chwidu, and in October, the Maritime Cultural Heritage Institute recovered a general statue from the reported site. The institute explained, “It is presumed that a ship transporting decorative tiles made in the Seoul area to royal-related buildings in the Samnam (Chungcheong-do, Jeolla-do, Gyeongsang-do) region sank near the Taean area.”

These artifacts will be displayed at the National Taean Marine Relics Exhibition Hall from the 31st of this month to the 5th of next month. Related videos can be viewed on the National Research Institute of Maritime Cultural Heritage’s YouTube channel.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.