What's new in Gyeongju
Golden City, Gyeongju
Experience a Traditional Wedding at Gyeongju Hyanggyo
- Name
- 관리자
- Date
- 2011-06-08
This May to October, Gyeongju City and the Gyeongju Culture Foundation is proud to present reenactments of a traditional wedding ceremony at the Gyeongju Hyanggyo. A “hyanggyo” is a Confucian temple and school where local children were taught during the Joseon Dynasty (late 14th century to early 20th century).
The reenactments will run at 11:00am every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from May 14th to the end of October. The ceremonies will last 90 minutes.
The “cheerful feast” that was the traditional wedding ceremony had six stages. First there was “talk of the marriage”. Then a series of presents were sent from the bridegroom's house to the bride's house, and official notification of the wedding date was sent from the bridegroom's family to the bride's family. This was followed by more presents being sent to the bride's house, this time gifts of blue and red silk. At last there was the marriage ceremony itself, and then finally the bride officially made her way to the bridegroom's home and the young couple began their new life together.
The ceremony will be reenacted in the traditional style. First there will be a wedding announcement, then the bride and groom will bow down in a series of bows, then the couple will take their vows to the gods of heaven and earth, and finally the couple will be declared married by combining two halves of a split gourd into one. There will be some entertainment to complement the ceremony. Traditional music will be performed by farmers and rice cakes will be pounded with old style mallets. It is expected that visitors will be able to both observe and participate in the festivities.
The organizers hope that reenactments such as these will bring enjoyment of Gyeongju attractions beyond simple appreciation for old buildings by injecting more life into the sites. Moreover, the reenactments were envisioned in part to instill more appreciation for traditional cultural heritage in the youngest generations.
The city and the Gyeongju Culture Foundation expect that these festivities will be held on a permanent basis in the coming years. Of course their hope is that both foreign and domestic tourists will be interested in this special cultural event, but the performances are not only of interest to visitors - the events will provide valuable social assistance in the form of employment for local older and elderly people, and lower income groups and multicultural families will also be able to participate.
There will be a charge for the experience. Applications are being accepted on an ongoing basis. For more information, please contact the tourism department of the Gyeongju Culture Foundation at (054) 748-7721 or the Gyeongju Hyanggyo at (054) 772-3624.
The reenactments will run at 11:00am every Friday, Saturday, and Sunday from May 14th to the end of October. The ceremonies will last 90 minutes.
The “cheerful feast” that was the traditional wedding ceremony had six stages. First there was “talk of the marriage”. Then a series of presents were sent from the bridegroom's house to the bride's house, and official notification of the wedding date was sent from the bridegroom's family to the bride's family. This was followed by more presents being sent to the bride's house, this time gifts of blue and red silk. At last there was the marriage ceremony itself, and then finally the bride officially made her way to the bridegroom's home and the young couple began their new life together.
The ceremony will be reenacted in the traditional style. First there will be a wedding announcement, then the bride and groom will bow down in a series of bows, then the couple will take their vows to the gods of heaven and earth, and finally the couple will be declared married by combining two halves of a split gourd into one. There will be some entertainment to complement the ceremony. Traditional music will be performed by farmers and rice cakes will be pounded with old style mallets. It is expected that visitors will be able to both observe and participate in the festivities.
The organizers hope that reenactments such as these will bring enjoyment of Gyeongju attractions beyond simple appreciation for old buildings by injecting more life into the sites. Moreover, the reenactments were envisioned in part to instill more appreciation for traditional cultural heritage in the youngest generations.
The city and the Gyeongju Culture Foundation expect that these festivities will be held on a permanent basis in the coming years. Of course their hope is that both foreign and domestic tourists will be interested in this special cultural event, but the performances are not only of interest to visitors - the events will provide valuable social assistance in the form of employment for local older and elderly people, and lower income groups and multicultural families will also be able to participate.
There will be a charge for the experience. Applications are being accepted on an ongoing basis. For more information, please contact the tourism department of the Gyeongju Culture Foundation at (054) 748-7721 or the Gyeongju Hyanggyo at (054) 772-3624.
- File
