Jikcheon Seowon

About this place

Jikcheon Seowon in Gyeongju is a Confucian academy that venerates Jeong Sa-jin (pen name Suam, 1567–1616), a scholar of the late Joseon period. Jeong Sa-jin was from Yeongcheon in North Gyeongsang Province; his ancestral seat was Yeongil and his courtesy name was Gunseop. He studied under Jang Hyeon-gwang (pen name Yeoheon) and was active in raising a righteous army during the Imjin War. In 1606 (the 39th year of King Seonjo) he was recommended as a tutor to a prince, and in 1611 (the 3rd year of Gwanghaegun) he was appointed to the posts of Sema and Sijik, but he declined them all and devoted himself solely to scholarship. Jikcheon Seowon was built at Jikcheon in Yeongcheon in 1711 (the 37th year of King Sukjong); after it was demolished under the Daewongun's abolition of the seowon academies in 1868 (the 5th year of King Gojong), it was rebuilt by his descendants in 1979 at Daedong-ri, Angang-eup, Gyeongju. The buildings within the grounds comprise the shrine Sunghaksa, the lecture hall Yangjeongdang, Boinjae, and Sujaemun, among others. The lecture hall Yangjeongdang consists of a wooden-floored hall and side rooms to the left and right, and is used for clan events and gatherings of local Confucian scholars.