Cheonggudo(2008-1)

Basic information

Designation

Treasure No.1594-1

Category

Craft

Era

19세기

Designated year

2008

Location

서초구, 서울특별시— 서울 서초구 반포대로 201, 국립중앙도서관 (반포동,국립중앙도서관)

Coordinates

37.497483, 127.003038

With the cover title Cheonggudo, literally a “Map of the Blue Hills,” as Korea was referred to by the Chinese, this is the first general map of Korea made by Kim Jeong-ho (1804-1866), the father of Korean cartography. Kim completed this map in 1834, joining in the efforts which had been under way among local mapmakers since the late 18th century to overcome problems with conventional maps and further contributing his creative ideas. Kim tried to enhance the practical value of maps by combining geographic information that had only been recorded in gazetteers. As a result, the maps here contain historical and geographical information about individual counties such as the number of households, farmland areas, troops available for mobilization, amounts of grain collected as taxes, distance to the capital city, and sites of major historic events. This is how the map attained its unique composition as a comprehensive source of relatively detailed historical and geographical information about each region. The Map is housed at the National Library of Korea. Along with another Cheonggudo at Yeungnam University Library, this remarkable compilation of well-organized, hand-drawn colored Maps is in an excellent state of preservation.

Location