<Changdeok Palace>

  Have you ever been Changdeok Palace? Changdeok Palace was built for King Taejong in 1405. There are many beautiful buildings like Injeongjeon, Seonjeongjeon and Daejojeon. My favorite structures were Injeongjeon. Let me tell you about this structure.

Injeongjeon is the throne hall. Kings had big ceremony and received foreign visitors at Injeongjeon. When I went there, the stones on the floors attracted me. Before I visit there, I thought everything will be smooth in the Changdeok Palace. However, the stones on the floor were arch stones which are called Bakseok in Korean and they were very tough.

 When I read the book about our palace, there were three reasons why the floor is filled with rough arch stones. Imagine that the rocks are very smooth. When the sun shines, people¡¯s eyes will hurt because of reflection of the sunlight. They will look up straight at the king to avoid the strong and reflected light. At that time, people thought looking straight at king was very naughty action. The second reason was when the weather is rainy, floor will be slippery and people may slip and fall down. I think that our ancestors were so clever to choose arch stones to cover the floor.

 Unfortunately, I can¡¯t remember the last reason. Maybe I should have to read more carefully about the Changdeok palace after all.

By Sieun Lee