Gwanghwamun () is the main and largest gate of Gyeongbok Palace, in Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea. It is located at a three-way intersection at the northern end of Sejongno. As a landmark and symbol of Seoul's long history as the capital city during the Joseon Dynasty, the gate has gone through multiple periods of destruction and disrepair. The most recent large-scale restoration work on the gate was finished and it was opened to the public on August 15, 2010.

History

Gwanghwamun was first constructed in 1395 as the main gate to Gyeongbok Palace, the main and most important royal palace during the Joseon Dynasty. During the 1592 Japanese invasion, it was destroyed by fire and left in ruins for over 250 years. Japanese GeneralGovernmentBuildingFront

Gwanghwamun was reconstructed in 1867 along with the rest of Gyeongbokgung Palace by the order of regent

Daewongun Heungseon Daewongun (흥선대원군, 興宣大院君, 21 December 1820 – 22 February 1898; ), also known as the Daewongun (대원군, 大院君), Guktaegong (국태공, 國太公, "The Great Archduke") or formally Internal King Heungseon Heon ...

during the reign of Emperor Gojong. The gate stood until 1926, when the

Japanese government The Government of Japan consists of legislative, executive and judiciary branches and is based on popular sovereignty. The Government runs under the framework established by the Constitution of Japan, adopted in 1947. It is a unitary state, c ...

had it deconstructed and moved it just to the southeast of the current location of the

National Folk Museum of Korea National Folk Museum of Korea is a national museum of South Korea, located within the grounds of the Gyeongbokgung Palace in Jongno-gu, Seoul. It uses replicas of historical objects to illustrate the history of traditional life of the Korean pe ...

to make way for the massive Japanese Governor General Building. The Korean War completely destroyed the wooden structure of Gwanghwamun, and its stone base lay in complete disrepair and neglect. In 1968, during

Park Chung-hee Park Chung-hee (, ; 14 November 1917 – 26 October 1979) was a South Korean politician and army general who served as the dictator of South Korea from 1961 until his assassination in 1979; ruling as an unelected military strongman from 1961 ...

's administration, the stone base was again relocated in front of the Japanese Governor General Building. The destroyed wooden structure was rebuilt in concrete, while the sign on Gwanghwamun was written in hangul by Park himself. Gwanghwamun remained as a concrete gate until late 2006.

Restoration

Gwanghwamun underwent a major restoration project since December 2006 and was finished in August 2010. The gate was disassembled and moved back to its original location 14.5 meters to the south, and its wooden structure was again reconstructed in wood. It was rotated in order to accurately place the gate to its original location, which perfectly aligns it with the main north-south axis of

Gyeongbokgung Palace Gyeongbokgung (), also known as Gyeongbokgung Palace or Gyeongbok Palace, was the main royal palace of the Joseon dynasty. Built in 1395, it is located in northern Seoul, South Korea. The largest of the ''Five Grand Palaces'' built by the Joseon ...

. The restoration was commenced by the

South Korean government The Government of South Korea is the union government of the South Korea, Republic of Korea, created by the Constitution of South Korea as the executive, legislative and judicial authority of the republic. The president acts as the head of sta ...

because an earlier restoration employed concrete instead of traditional materials and wrongly aligned the gate to the entrance of the Governor General Building, now destroyed. The aim of the latest renovation was to restore Gwanghwamun to its original wooden construction while paying meticulous attention to historical accuracy. The name plate of Gwanghwamun was recreated by analyzing its century-old glass plate photographs, while its wooden structure was devised from a blueprint created in 1925 by the

Japanese Colonial Government The also known as the Japanese Empire or Imperial Japan, was a historical nation-state and great power that existed from the Meiji Restoration in 1868 until the enactment of the post-World War II 1947 constitution and subsequent forma ...

. Pine wood used in the construction was painstakingly selected in Korea as the use of foreign imported wood for recreating Korea's historic buildings was strictly forbidden. Gwanghwamun name plate

Gwanghwamun was opened to the public on August 15, 2010, to commemorate

Gwangbokjeol The National Liberation Day of Korea is a holiday celebrated annually on 15 August in both South and North Korea. It commemorates Victory over Japan Day, when the United States and the Soviet Union liberated Korea from 35 years of Japanese ...

, or ''Liberation Day of Korea''. The project cost . A new name plate on the restored Gwanghwamun was unveiled on the same day. The name on the plate was based on Hanja lettering by Im Tae-young, the general in charge of the rebuilding programme by

King Gojong of Joseon Gojong (; 8 September 1852 – 21 January 1919) was the monarch of Korea from 1864 to 1907. He reigned as the last King of Joseon from 1864 to 1897, and as the first Emperor of Korea from 1897 until his forced abdication in 1907. He is known ...

, written against a white backdrop framed by Dancheong traditional coloring painted by master Yang Yong-ho. The lettering was done by master Oh Ok-jin, using the gakjajang method of calligraphic engraving, a technique designated as Important Intangible Cultural Property no 106. However, cracks in the wooden plate were showing by early November, where a long vertical crack is visible on the left side of Hanja character "光" and beneath "門" in the middle. The

Cultural Heritage Administration The Cultural Heritage Administration () or CHA, formerly the Cultural Properties Administration, is the agency of the South Korean government charged with preserving and promoting Korean cultural heritage. It is headquartered in the city of Dae ...

(CHA) blamed the dry autumn weather for the contraction of the wood, but experts differs on that an immature pine board was used to meet the deadline for completion and that the wood had not dried properly. After many debates, a repair to the cracks was made, and the panel at CHA concluded in December 2010 that it should be replaced, hence the Government commissioned a new name plate. 13 wooden boards for the new signboard were cut in September 2011 and have since undergone a natural drying process in Gangwon Province. However, in a survey of 5,000 people conducted by the

, 58.7 percent responded that the inscription should be in Hangul while 41.3 percent opted Hanja. The long-lost 1395 original was written in Hanja. A majority of experts consulted thought the sign should be carved as the original had been.

Tourism

Royal Guard at Gwanghwamun Gate, Gyeongbokgung, Seoul

The area in front of Gwanghwamun, known as the Gwanghwamun Plaza, was opened as a public open space on 1 August 2009. It is part of the

Seoul Metropolitan Government The Seoul Metropolitan Government is a local government of Seoul, South Korea. The mayor is elected to a four-year term by the citizens of Seoul and is responsible for the administration of the city government. The Seoul Metropolitan Government d ...

's plans for environmentally friendly renovation projects such as the Cheonggye Stream and Seoul Plaza. In a poll of nearly 2,000 foreign visitors conducted by the

in November 2011, visitors stated that watching the changing of the guards at the main gate as their third favorite activity in Seoul. The royal changing of the guard ceremony is held in front of the main gate every hour from 10:00 to 15:00. On 23 September 2012, the

started on a trial basis, a 550-m designated section of Sejong-ro as pedestrian-only but permitted for cyclists. The section includes the road from the Gwanghwamun three-way intersection, along Gwanghwamun Plaza in front of the Sejong Center for the Performing Arts to the Sejong-ro intersection.

Transport

* Gyeongbokgung Station on Seoul Subway Line 3 - nearest to the Gate * Gwanghwamun Station on Seoul Subway Line 5 - located 600 metres at the southern end of Gwanghwamun Plaza * City Hall Station on Seoul Subway Line 1 and Seoul Subway Line 2 - located 800 meters at the southern end of Gwanghwamun Plaza

References

External links