Anseonghyanggyo Punghwa Pavilion

Basic information

Designation

Treasure No.2092

Category

Architecture

Era

조선시대(1630∼1660년 사이 재건, 1687년 벼락으로 수리)

Designated year

2020

Location

안성시, 경기도— 경기도 안성시 향교길 75(명륜동, 안성향교)

Coordinates

37.013731, 127.276353

The Anseonghyanggyo Local Confucian School’s Punghwaru Hall is a rather grand, tower-shaped structure measuring 11 kan* by 1 kan. The gate tower serves as both a rest area and the entrance to the local public Confucian school (hyanggyo), and is the largest structure of its kind dating from the Joseon period. It is built on the edge of a slope, creating the effect of a screening wall that prevents casual passersby from glancing inside, but its thin side (1 kan) appears to be designed to avoid creating an overbearing impression. The appearance of the overall structure suggests that efforts were made to use wood economically in the seventeenth century, when the country was recovering from the devastation and hardships caused by the Imjin War (1592-1598), which was started by Japan, and the Byeongja War (1636-1637), which was started by the Qing Dynasty of China. Its harmonious structure exhibits stability and esthetic beauty, while the columns in the lower floor displays wielding technique of that era, and the push-out casement windows are regarded as particularly interesting features by scholars interested in the architecture of the mid-Joseon period.

Location