Cheongamjeong Pavilion in Bonghwa

About this place

Cheongamjeong is a pavilion built in 1526 (the 21st year of King Jungjong) by Kwon Beol, a civil official of the mid-Joseon period, in Daksil village (formerly Yugok village), Bonghwa-eup, Bonghwa-gun, Gyeongsangbuk-do. Water was drawn up from a point about 500 m upstream of the Sintan stream to create a pond, and a turtle-shaped rock and a modest stone bridge were placed there, further heightening the old-world atmosphere. Cheongamjeong is a place with a pond alongside an early-Joseon garden, and it also has a separate detached hall (byeoldang) enclosed by a square stone wall. A thatched house is attached to it; inside the pavilion hangs a plaque inscribed 'Cheongam suseok (靑巖水石),' written by Heo Mok, which conveys the appearance of an old rural pond to this day. It is a scenic spot representing Yugok village and harmonizes beautifully with the dense pine trees, lovely stones, and valley around it. On March 28, 1963, it was designated as a Historic and Scenic Site under the title 'Relics related to Chungjae Kwon Beol in Naeseong Yugok,' and then on December 9, 2009, this designation was lifted and it was simultaneously re-designated as a Scenic Site. Yugok village is where the ancestors of Chungjae Kwon Beol first settled in 1380; it is a single-clan village of the Andong Kwon clan, with the Seokcheon valley flowing to the west.