Korea Heritage Service unveils centuries-old repatriated wooden plaque

The hanging wooden plaque for Gyeongbok Palace's Seonwonjeon made a homecoming about 100 years after being repatriated from Japan. [KOREA HERITAGE SERVICE]

 
For over a century, a hanging wooden plaque with the gilded inscription “Seonwonjeon” was thought to be lost to history.  
 
This wooden plaque, known as pyeonaek in Korean, used to adorn one of the royal halls of Gyeongbok Palace in central Seoul. However, it was lost, like many other Korean cultural heritages, during Japan’s colonial rule over Korea. After almost a century, the plaque has returned to its motherland from Japan and was unveiled to the local press on Feb. 27 during a press conference held at the National Palace Museum of Korea in central Seoul.  
 

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Despite being lost for more than 100 years, this imposing plaque, measuring 312 centimeters in width and 140 centimeters in height, seems to have been preserved well, without too much damage. Though slightly aged, its intricate cloud motifs and vibrant dancheong (traditional Korean decorative coloring on wooden buildings) still hint at its former grandeur.  
 
Kim Jeong-hee, chair of the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation, said the foundation has “successfully repatriated numerous cultural artifacts since its establishment in 2012, including 25 pieces last year alone. However, the return of this plaque is particularly meaningful as it’s a rare royal artifact.”  
 
Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation is an organization under Korea Heritage Service that works to bring back Korea’s cultural heritages scattered around the world.
 
The plaque was set to be auctioned in Japan in November 2023, according to Korea Heritage Service. Since it’s difficult to bring the artifact back once it gets auctioned off, the foundation had to act quickly and negotiate with the Japanese collector who was about to sell the artifact. With successful negotiation, the plaque was returned to the country in February 2024.  
 

A glass plate photograph of Seonwonjeon in Gyeongbok Palace during the Japanese colonial period. [NATIONAL MUSEUM OF KOREA]

The fate of Seonwonjeon and Korea’s dispersed heritage
 
Where did this wooden plaque come from?
 
It used to be a sign for Gyeongbok Palace’s Seonwonjeon. This hall served as one of the important halls inside the palace as it was where portraits of past kings were enshrined. Memorial ceremonies for the former kings were also conducted here. The word “seonwon” means “the root of jade,” symbolizing the royal lineage and “Jeon” means a “hall” in Korean.  
 
The palace’s first Seonwonjeon was established in 1444 but was destroyed during the Japanese invasions of the late 16th century.
 
For about 100 years since then, Seonwonjeon could not be established inside any of the palaces. It wasn’t until 1695 that a new Seonwonjeon was constructed inside Changdeok Palace to finally enshrine Joseon Kings’ portraits. Following the reconstruction of the Gyeongbok palace, Seonwonjeon was reestablished inside the place in 1868 and its function was reinstated there, according to the “Gyeongbokgung Yeonggeon Ilgi,” or the “The Construction Diaries of Gyeongbok Palace.”  
 
The reestablished Seonwonjeon inside Gyeongbok Palace was however, dismantled by the Japanese in 1930s and the materials were repurposed to construct Bakmunsa, a Japanese temple in Jangchung-dong, central Seoul in 1932. The temple burned down in 1945, leaving little trace of the original structure. It is this Seonwonjeon that experts believe the plaque had been hung up.  
 
Other Seonwonjeon plaques were lost to fires, according to experts, and the only surviving Seonwonjeon plaque in the country was Changdeok Palace’s, until the homecoming of Gyeongbok Palace’s.    
 

A 1888 photograph of Gyeongbok Palace's Seonwonjeon [KOREA HERITAGE SERVICE]

 
Though the Korea Heritage Service cannot disclose further details of its acquisition, including the price or who the previous owner was, it said that the previous owner had told them that the plaque, after leaving Korea, went into the hands of Terauchi Masatake (1852–1919), who was Japan’s Prime Minister from 1916 to 1918. He was appointed as the third and last Japanese Governor-General of Korea in 1910.  
 
However, Kang Hye-seung, a senior researcher at the foundation, said her team of researchers, who have been working hard to trace how it got taken outside the country for more than a year, “found no definitive records supporting the previous owner’s claims.”
 

The hanging wooden plaque for Gyeongbok Palace's Seonwonjeon, which was retrieved from Japan, is being revealed to the local press for the first time on Feb. 27, at the National Palace Museum of Korea in central Seoul. [KOREA HERITAGE SERVICE]

Corporate philanthropy fuels cultural repatriation


The plaque’s return was made possible through the support of the League of Legends developer Riot Games. The company has been an avid supporter for preserving and utilizing Korean cultural properties, especially financially helping the government restitute valuable artifacts located overseas.  
 
“As a company contributing to modern culture, we believe it is our responsibility to help preserve Korea’s cultural heritage,” said Riot Games Korea’s CEO, Jo Hyuk-jin. The company has donated approximately 10 billion won for Korea’s cultural heritage preservation, with 3.6 billion won allocated specifically for repatriation and conservation projects.
 
A glimpse into Korea’s royal past


The Korea Heritage Service considers this plaque particularly valuable as it’s one of the few “original” artifacts from Gyeongbok Palace after it was reconstructed during Gojong of Korea’s reign as emperor. Most of the palace’s buildings went through more reconstructions since then, but only a handful of original plaques from that period remain, which includes Geunjeongjeon and Yeongchumun.
 
Koo Bon-neung, a master artisan at the Dancheong Research Institute explained the hierarchical distinctions in royal plaques.
 

The retrieved wooden plaque is the highest-ranking plaque, having elaborately designed carvings in the edges. [KOREA HERITAGE SERVICE]

The highest-ranking plaques feature a black background with golden characters, which is a style reserved for structures of the utmost significance, such as Gwanghwamun and Geunjeongjeon.
 
“This particular plaque is among the most prestigious,” Koo said.  
 
There are four different types of plaques and ranks differ depending on the shape, according to Koo. The flat type has no borders and is the lowest in class. Next is the arch type with round borders. Then follows so-called mopan type, which is wider with larger borders. The highest class is the quadrilateral type, which is similar to mopan, but with carved designs in the borders.  
 
“The repatriated plaque is the quadrilateral type,” said Koo. “It has an elaborate frame with carved elements. Coupled with the luxurious gold lettering and intricate dancheong patterns, there is no doubt that it once adorned the Seonwonjeon of Gyeongbok Palace.”

BY YIM SEUNG-HYE [yim.seunghye@joongang.co.kr]