Gumi Seosan Hyanggyo

This description was machine-translated from the Korea Tourism Organization's Korean original.

A hyanggyo was a national educational institution established in each locality in the era when Confucianism was revered. Gumi Seonsan Hyanggyo is said to have been first built in the early Joseon period, but the buildings of that time burned down during the Imjin War. Later, in the 33rd year of King Seonjo’s reign (1600), Seonsan Magistrate Kim Yong (金涌) built Daeseongjeon Hall (大成殿) and the East and West Residences (東齋 and 西齋), and in the 1st year of King Injo’s reign (1623), Seonsan Magistrate Sim Ryun (沈倫) newly built Myeongnyundang Hall (明倫堂) and the East and West Residences. The buildings take the form of jeonhak-humyo (前學後廟), with Myeongnyundang—the space for teaching and learning—in front, and Daeseongjeon—the space where Confucian sages’ spirit tablets are enshrined and rites are performed—behind. Cheongaru (菁莪樓), which serves both as a place of study and a place of rest, is a pavilion whose plan is U-shaped; the front is two stories, while the rear connects to the courtyard of Myeongnyundang, which is unusual.