Jongmyo Shrine: A brief Description

Jongmyo is the oldest and most authentic of the Confucian royal shrines to have been preserved. Dedicated to the forefathers of the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910), the shrine has existed in its present form since the 16th century and houses tablets bearing the teachings of members of the former royal family. Ritual ceremonies linking music, song and dance still take place there, perpetuating a tradition that goes back to the 14th century.

Jongmyo is the oldest and most authentic of the Confucian royal shrines to have been preserved. Dedicated to the forefathers of the Joseon dynasty (1392–1910), the shrine has existed in its present form since the 16th century and houses tablets bearing the teachings of members of the former royal family. Ritual ceremonies linking music, song and dance still take place there, perpetuating a tradition that goes back to the 14th century.

Sanctuaire de Jongmyo
Jongmyo, dédié aux ancêtres de la dynastie Joseon (1392-1910), est le plus ancien et le plus authentique des sanctuaires royaux confucéens conservés aujourd'hui. Son aspect actuel date du XVI^e siècle. Il abrite des tablettes portant les enseignements des membres de l'ancienne famille royale. Des cérémonies rituelles associant musique, chant et danse s'y déroulent encore, perpétuant une tradition remontant au XIV^e siècle.

ضريح غيونغ ميو

يعتبر ضريح غيونغ ميو الملكي الذي بني تكريماً لملوك شوزونوملكاتها (1392-1910) أقدم الأضرحة الملكية الكونفوشيوسية وأكثرها أصالة، علماً ان مظهره الحالي يعود الى القرن السادس عشر. وهو يحوي ألواحاً كتبت عليها تعاليم أعضاء الأسرة الملكية السابقة، أما الطقوس التي تجمع بين الموسيقى والغناء والرقص فلا تزال تمارس حتى اليوم تخليداً لتقليد يرتقي الى القرن الرابع عشر.

Source: UNESCO/BPI

宗庙
宗庙是距今时间最远，而且保存原貌最好的儒家圣殿。宗庙是为了祭祀朝鲜王朝（1392-1910年）的先祖们而修建的，从16世纪起它就一直保持着现在我们所见到的样子。宗庙中还收藏着许多碑石，上面雕刻着古代教育皇家成员的教义。在祭祀仪式上有音乐、舞蹈、唱歌表演，这种源于14世纪的传统一直延续到今天。
Source: UNESCO/ERI

Храм Чонмё
Чонмё – это старейший и наиболее сохранившийся королевский конфуцианский храм в Корее. Посвященный основателям династии Чосон (1392-1910 гг.), храм существует в его современном виде с начала XVI в. Здесь помещены дощечки, содержащие поучения членов бывшего королевского семейства. В храме всё ещё происходят ритуальные церемонии с музыкой, песнями и танцами, увековечивающие традицию, уходящую корнями в XIV в.

Source: UNESCO/ERI

Santuario de Jongmyo
Dedicado a los antepasados de la dinastía Choson (1392-1910), Jongmyo es el más antiguo de los santuarios reales confucianos conservados hoy. También es el más auténtico, ya que ha preservado la misma configuración que tenía en el siglo XVI. Alberga tabletas en las que están inscritas las enseñanzas de los miembros de la familia real. Todavía se celebran en su recinto ceremonias rituales acompañadas de música, cantos y danzas, con lo cual se perpetúa una tradición que data del siglo XIV.
Source: UNESCO/ERI

宗廟
source: NFUAJ

The Jongmyo Shrine is an outstanding example of the Confucian royal ancestral shrine, which has survived relatively intact since the 16th century, the importance of which is enhanced by the persistence of an important element of the intangible cultural heritage in the form of traditional ritual practices and forms.
Jongmyo is the royal ancestral shrine of the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910). Taejo, founder of the kingdom, transferred the seat of government to Hanyang (present-day Seoul) in 1394 and ordered the building of Jongmyo. The spirit tablets of four generations of Taejos ancestors were moved there from Gaeseong. Subsequently additional buildings were added to receive the spirit tablets of later Joseon kings, bringing the total of rooms in the former to 16 in Yeongnyeongjeon and 35 rooms in Jongmyo, respectively.
Jongmyo is situated in valleys and surrounded by low hills, artificial additions created to reinforce the balance of natural elements on the site as defined in traditional geomancy. Jongmyo is composed of three sets of buildings centred on Hyangdaecheong, a single building, on the main shrine, and the Hall of Eternal Peace, an auxiliary shrine. The main features are as follows: Changyeopmun (the main gate), built from thick wooden planks; Mangmyoru, a wooden structure with a tiled roof where the king waited before the ancestral rituals; Gongmingdang, the shrine to the Goryeo King, built by the Joseon King Taejo; Hyangdaecheong, the storage building for ritual utensils; Jaesil, a main hall and two wings, where participants waited for the rites to take place.
Jongmyo Jeongjeon is surrounded by rectangular walls with gates to the south, east and west. The rectangular inner court platform is floored with rough granite slabs. Three sets of steps ascend the front of the stone base and there are smaller sets of steps at the far ends on either side. Jeongjeon itself is a wooden structure, both the left and the right flanking chambers. The two wings jut out into the woldae. It is divided into several rooms, with the open corridors in front and the 19 inner shrine rooms, separated by wooden doors. The shrine rooms are divided into cubicles, for the 49 spirit tablets lodged there, and antechambers, which are in turn separated by screens. The gabled roof is supported by simple wooden brackets. The main entrance is reserved for the spirits and no one is allowed to pass through it. The east gate is used by the king and the smaller west gate by the musical performers.
Chilsadang houses seven deities, including the gods of palace gates, kitchens, roads, halls and rooms, entrances and exits, and those who die of epidemic diseases; Gongsindang houses the spirit tablets of 83 loyal subjects of the Joseon kings. Jonsacheong is where the ritual utensils and offerings used in the rites are prepared; Subokbang is the ground-keeper's residence, when the food offered during the rituals is examined.
Yeongnyeongjeon is the building in which the spirit tablets of kings not recognized worthy of being honoured indefinitely were lodged when they were removed after a set time from Jeongjeon. It is situated in a rectangular compound entered by three gates. It is built on a rectangular platform, paved with thin slabs of granite. The building has two side wings flanking the main chamber, different in size. Wooden brackets at the tops of the round pillars support the eaves of the gabled roof.
Source: UNESCO/CLT/WHC

Historical Description

Chongmyo is the royal ancestral shrine of the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910). Taejo, founder of the Choson Kingdom, transferred the seat of government to Hanyang (today's Seoul) in August 1394 and ordered Ch'oe Won, his director of government administration, to start building Chongmyo in December the same year. It was completed ten months later and named T'aemyo. The spirit tablets of four generations of T'aejo's ancestors were moved there from Kaesong.
During the fust year of the reign of Sejong (1419) an auxiliary building, Yeongnyeongjeon, was built to the west of Taemyo to receive the spirit tablet of the second Joseon king, Chongjong. Four shrine chambers were added to this structure in 1547 because of shortage of space.
Ali the buildings were destroyed by fire in May 1592, during the Hideyoshi invasions.- King Sorüo took the Chongmyo tablets with him when he fled before the Japanese, but the ancestral shrine was destroyed. Restoration was completed in 1608, on his retum to his capital.
More rooms were added to Yongnyongjon in 1667 and to Chongjon in 1778 and again in 1836, bringing the total of rooms in the former to eight and the latter to nineteen. Subsequent additions have brought them to 16 and 35 rooms respectively.
Chongmyo Cherye, the memorial services conducted each year at Chongjon, also constitute a heritage of great antiquity and significance in terms of intangible culture. They incorporate music, song, and dance, and owe their origins to court music imported from China by King T'aejo at the end of the 14th century.-

source:jongmyo UNESCO center