Piece of a sad movie, Duksugung

‘Romeo and Juliet’, ‘ Titanic’…….. Have you watched these movies before?

These are the movies famous for their sad story.

But besides those movies, we can find a real heartbreaking scenario inside a palace.

Want to know about what happened to that mysterious palace?

↑ This is the picture of entrance to this palace.. ‘Deoksugung’  (the entrance’s name is Daehanmun)

   Deoksugung is one of the five royal palace in Seoul. The name of this palace means “Palace of virtue 

   and signifies longevity”. This was for the hope of Emperor Gojong’s long life.

   This palace is located in the middle of Seoul’s busiest downtown.

   ↑ It’s stone-wall road is very elegant and popular.

   Even some of the famous song’s names are ‘Deoksugung stone-wall road’.

  ↑  Walking through the Daehanmun, you can see the strange looking animal stone-made monument.

     This mysterious animal’s name is ‘Suksu’ meaning animal made of rock. Between the monuments, there is a

     picture  

     that seems to have been damaged. It is believed that during the times when Japan controlled Korea, Japanese

      purposely made children to play over the rock ignoring the fact that this ‘rock’ is a cultural asset.  

↑ This gorgeous and spectacle structure’s name is ‘Junghwajeon’. It is the main hall of the palace, and was used for 

   greeting the foreing envoys and throwing a party for the occasions. The day I went to Deoksugung to study, there

   was a huge rehearsal to Traditional Korean Clothes Festival. Models were posing infront of the magnificant

   ‘Junghwajeon’.

↑ This is the picture of  ‘Deokhongjeon’. The small statues of animals were not only attractive but also interesting.

  It is said that ancestors believed they would always keep them safe. ‘Deokhongjeon’ was used for receiving high-

  ranking officials and foreign envoys. It is also very interesting to find there is a chandelier connected to electricity.

↑ This structure’s name is ‘Hamnyeongjeon’ where emperor Gojong always sleeped and sadly died. This place was

    destroyed by a purposely set fire by Japanese, but Gojong rebuilt the place and spent his life till he died. Gojong’s  

    death is believed that he was poisoned by Japanese. When he was found dead, his lips were blue and his body was

    full of blue dots because of the poison.

↑ This is a photo of the royal family. Gojong, who loved Deoksugung more than anyone, is in the middle of the

   picture. Gojong’s wife and her daughter is also taking place right next to Gojong.

 

↑ This structure is very unique compared to other designs of Korea’s traditional style building. It is said that the

    architect of this building was a Russian. That’s why the design of this structure is a bit different. It is a combination

    of Orient and Western. Gojong used to enjoy tea and coffee in this place.

↑Lastly, the ‘Seokjojeon’, a western-style stone building mainly used as a audience hall. Inside the building there is a

  reception hall and waiting room. On the second floor, there are Gojong’s bedrooms where Gojong sleeped

  occasionally. This building shows that the ‘Deoksugung’ is a great combination of elegant Orient and spectacle

  Western.