An Ancient Korean Village

The Label Stone for the Nakan Fortified Village (낙안읍성)

     This past weekend I visited the Ancient Nakan Fortified Village (낙안읍성).  It was a real treat to see something that was so old in Korea.

     Because of centuries of nearly constant warfare and invasions by other countries (Japan, China and Mongolia primarily), Korean structures do not always stand the test of time, as they may have without so much conflict.  Most recently, while the Korean peninsula was occupied by the Japanese during the first half of the 20th century, there was a systematic dismantling and destroying of culturally significant sites.  Because of this, many of the culturally significant sites that exist today, are fairly new, and if they are 'ancient' they are often recreations.

     That is why this site is so special.  Apparently, it has been around for several hundred years.  It has become something of an attraction because of it's uniqueness, but people still live and work in the village.  They have traditional music and singing performances as well as some people wearing traditional Joseon (조선) era garb.  The Korean Peninsula, like the Chinese Empire, can be divided through history between several Kingdoms or Dynasties.  The Joseon Dynasty in Korea is seen by most Koreans today as the epitome of Korean cultural greatness (unless you ask a middle school girl, then KPOP is the best thing that has ever been produced on this planet, or any other).  Most of their national and folk heroes come from the Joseon era, and they still very much enjoy period movies and TV shows from this time.

     The houses in the Nakan Village are still (mostly) in the style of the Joseon era.  They have updated somewhat (electrification, plumbing, etc.), but retain a very ancient and authentic feel.  I hope you enjoy some of the pictures I took while wandering through the past.

The East Gate of Nakan Village (낙안읍성 동대문)

The 'moat' in front of the gate.  It's really just a stream.

A procession of traditionally dressed Koreans.

A man killin' it on the Daegum (대금), a Korean style bamboo flute.

This is the town drum, which would have functioned as a general alert,
much like a town bell would have in Europe.

These statues are portraying what the Joseon justice system was like.
This building is both a police station and a court.

Also, I guess they would hand out punishments here too.
This kid was punishing the statue, then got yelled at for it.  Ironic?