Gungbok Palace

The Gungbok Palace was built in 1395 by the first king of Choseon Dynasty. I saw the Gwanghwamun. I learned that the original gate was destroyed during the Imjin War and was rebuilt by Heng-seon-dae-won-gun. Gwanghwamun was destroyed again in the Korean War and was rebuilt by President Park.

When I saw the Geun-jeong-jeon, I could feel the power of the king at once. On the left of the throne of the king, there were ranking stones for the civil officials and on the right there were ranking stones for the military officials. The Geung-jeong-jeon looks like a 2 story building but it is actually a one story building with a high roof.

When I saw the Ja-geong-jeon I saw the beautiful walls of Ja-geong-jeon. It had the shape of the flower and I knew it was for a special women. The chimney had ten symbols on it including a turtle, crane, sun, moon, and a grass that makes a person never die for everlasting life.

The Gyeong-hoe-ru is the supported by 48 stone pillars. The outer pillars are squared and the inner pillars are rounded. The squared pillar is a symbol for the earth and the rounded pillars are the symbol of heaven. In this pavilion, kings hosted parties and were extravagant. The Gyeng-hoe-ru is a National Treasure. The story of the Hyang-won-jeon is sad. Queen Min¡¯s ashes were thrown in the Hyang-won-jeon by Japanese assassin. I learned that the Gungbok Palace is very beautiful but it has a lot of tragedies.