[New Release] Old Seochon, Old Seoul

Published 10 Jul.2023 14:28(KST)

The old Seoul within the Four Great Gates and Seongjeo Sipri is a place deeply engraved with 500 years of Joseon Dynasty history, 35 years of Japanese colonial rule, and 70 years of the Republic of Korea. Among these spaces, some histories have been completely forgotten, while others still leave traces. This book examines what these spaces truly were in our history and what meaning they hold for us today by connecting them with current political, social, and cultural issues.

New Release from Miseum Publishing: "Old Seochon, Old Seoul"

This book divides the old Seoul spaces into four parts. The north of Seochon, the south of Seochon and outside Changuimun, the north of Seoul, and the south of Seoul and Yongsan. Part 1, the north of Seochon, is the space of the royal family, the yangban (aristocrats), and presidents. This area includes Junsubang, Jangdong (Jang-ui-dong), Suseong-dong, Cheongpung-gye, and Ongnyu-dong. Junsubang and Suseong-dong were places where Taejong, Sejong, Munjong, Sejo, Anpyeong, and Hyoryeong lived and were active. Jangdong and Cheongpung-gye were spaces for the yangban, including the Jangdong Kim clan, and presidents, while Ongnyu-dong was a place where the yangban and jungin (middle class) mingled. Part 2, the south of Seochon and outside Changuimun, was a more complex space than the north of Seochon. There were places like Pilundae where the yangban and jungin lived together, and places like Ingyeonggung that dramatically changed from royal spaces to commoners' spaces. Changuigung and Wolseongwigung remained royal family spaces, and Inwangsan and Baekseokdongcheon were yangban spaces. Seokpajeong shifted its main occupants from the yangban to the royal family. Part 3, the north of Seoul, was overwhelmingly a space of struggle and cooperation between the royal family and the yangban. Hanyang and Yukjo Street were created together by the king and the yangban, and Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, and Songhyeon-dong bear the marks of power struggles between the royal family and the yangban. Uijeongbu and Saheonbu were spaces of cooperative politics between the king and the yangban. In contrast, Seonwonjeon and Gyeonghuigung were purely royal spaces. Part 4, the south of Seoul and Yongsan, is more complex. There are places like Gwangtonggyo, where internal struggles within the royal family took place, and places like Geoncheon-dong, where non-mainstream heroes of the yangban were born. Cheonggyecheon and Yak-hyeon were places where the yangban, jungin, and commoners mingled, and Yongsan was a space of foreign powers and authorities.

Finally, the book examines the history of place name distortions under Japanese rule. It reflects newly revealed information by the author and recent research findings. For example, it newly reveals that not only Taejong and Sejong lived in Junsubang Jamjeo (Jang-ui-dong Bon-gung), but Munjong and Sejo were also born there; that the original owner of Pilundae was not Kwon Yul but his father Kwon Cheol; that the Baeksong in Tongui-dong was not Kim Jeong-hui’s house but was inside King Yeongjo’s residence; that the house depicted in is presumed to be Jeong Seon’s house; and that Baekseokdongcheon (Baeksasil) had at least three successive owners. Especially, this book attempts to show through various records that the traditional place name of Seochon is ‘Jangdong.’ Yi Bang-won called his house ‘Jang-ui-dong Bon-gung,’ the representative yangban family of Seochon is the ‘Jangdong Kim clan,’ King Yeongjo wrote that his house Changuigung was in ‘Jangdong,’ and Kim Jeong-hui also wrote that his house was in ‘Jangdong.’ Jeong Seon painted eight beautiful landscapes of Seochon as the <‘Jangdong’ Palgyeongcheop>. The ‘Jang-ui-sa’ in Segumjeong, the northern gate of Hanyang Fortress ‘Changuimun,’ and Yeongjo’s residence ‘Changuigung’ are all related to the place name ‘Jangdong (Jang-ui-dong)’ and kinship.

What is the charm of Seochon history, which occupies half of this book? It is that it is multilayered and diverse even contemporaneously. For example, Tongin-dong was the site of Taejong and Sejong’s houses in the early Joseon period, but for most of the Joseon era, it housed royal institutions such as the Naesibu, Saposeo, and Naeseomsi, and today it is home to residences, Tongin Market, the People’s Solidarity for Participatory Democracy, and the Blue House Police Security Unit. Also, Seochon had various social classes living together contemporaneously, which distinguishes it from Bukchon, which was dominated by the yangban. Since the mid-Joseon period, the northern part of Seochon was home to the yangban such as the Jangdong Kim clan for generations, while the southern part of Seochon saw the establishment and demolition of King Gwanghaegun’s palace Ingyeonggung, after which soldiers and commoners moved in en masse. The joint residential areas of the yangban and jungin are around present-day Suseong-dong and Ongnyu-dong.

Meanwhile, the eastern part of Seochon adjacent to Gyeongbokgung remained a royal area, with residences and shrines of the royal family such as Changuigung, Wolseongwigung, Yuksanggung, and Sajegam. The author states that the numerous events that occurred in history are essentially meaningless by themselves. Rather, it is we, the later generations, who imbue history with meaning and derive lessons from it. If history has any value, it is ‘stories.’ Nurturing the rich stories that history has created is a good attitude toward history. This book is a small effort to cultivate the abundant stories of Seochon and Seoul in our time. As introduced in this book, Seoul has a deep history and many stories. Seoul is an unparalleled treasure trove of dramatic and rich stories. In that sense, the author believes it is time to open wide the doors of this treasure trove called Seoul. It is time to return those treasures taken from other regions and classes back to those regions and classes. When we look back at the history accumulated in the spaces of Seochon and Seoul, we see reflections of ourselves living in the present. The author says that history without a concrete space is like smoke floating in the air, just history in books and words. History comes alive vividly when it meets a concrete space. How about taking this book and visiting the spaces of Seochon and Seoul to feel the presence of history once?