
Cheonggan Pavilion
Cheonggan Pavilion (청간정; map; Cheongganjeong) stands on top of a craggy cliff overlooking the East Sea, near the bottom of Goseong County.
It holds several notable claims:
- It’s one of the Eight Scenic Views in Gwandong (관동팔경), eight ancient landmarks that dot Korea’s east coast.
- Locally, it is also recognized as one of the Eight Views of Goseong (고성8경).
- And the pavilion is Gangwon State’s Tangible Cultural Property No. 32.
Over its more than 500-year history, Cheonggan Pavilion has been a retreat for painters, scholars, and esteemed figures who visited to write, paint, or simply enjoy the tranquil surroundings.
Let’s explore!
History
Historical records don’t specify the date which Cheonggan Pavilion saw its first sunrise. However, records indicate it was repaired in 1520. So its origin probably dates a bit deeper into the Joseon Dynasty (1392 ~ 1897).
Throughout the pavilion’s life, it’s felt the blunt forces of Korea’s wartime history.
- In 1884, the Gapsin Coup — when Japan fomented an insurrection that failed to overthrow the Joseon Court — incinerated Cheonggan Pavilion, leaving only its 12 stone pillars.
- After the local government rebuilt Cheonggan Pavilion in 1928, fighting during the Korean War (1950 ~ 53) again razed the pavilion to the ground.
In 1953, President Syngman Rhee ordered workers to rebuild Cheonggan Pavilion. To commemorate its rebirth, he wrote one of two plaques that hang from the pavilion’s rafters.
Cheonggan Pavilion also saw major refurbishments in 1980 and 2012.
Fame
Over its lifetime, many famous Korean artists and officials visited Cheonggan Pavilion. Here’s a brief list.
- Jeong Cheol (정철; 1536 ~ 1594), known as one of the most important figures in Korean poetry, wrote of the pavilion’s beauty in his Gwandong Byeolgok (관동별곡), a collection of poetry depicting the Eight Scenic Views in Gwandong.
- Revered Joseon Dynasty painters, including Kim Hong-do, Heo Pil, Kang Se-hwang, and Jeong Seon, each painted the pavilion on top of its rocky cliffs, amongst crooked pines and serene waves.
The Pavilion
Cheonggan Pavilion stands on a coastal hill where Cheonggan Stream (천진천; map; Cheonggancheon), which originates high up on Seorak Mountain (설악산; map), flows into the East Sea.
Cheonggan Pavilion Exhibition Hall (map) lies at the bottom of the hill where the pavilion sits. It highlights the pavilion’s architecture and heritage. Near its entrance sit three steles that honor those that rebuilt the pavilion after its destructions, stating that if future generations repair the pavilion, its lifespan will be eternal.
From the exhibition hall, visitors can climb a path that ascends through a dense pine forest to the pavilion’s panoramic perch.
Design
After Cheonggan Pavilion burned during the Gapsin Coup, only its stone foundation remained. Workers reconstructed the pavilion on top of these twelve ancient stone pillars that mold to the rocky hillside’s base and rise to form a level platform on which the pavilion sits.
The largest pavilion in Gangwon Province’s northern region, today’s pavilion, largely recreates Cheonggan’s original form. It’s multi-tiered layout features an octagonal paljak roof (팔작지붕; hip-and-gable), with three bays in the front (spaces between support pillars), and two bays on the sides.
Two plaques that bear the pavilion’s name — Cheongganjeong (清澗亭) — hang inside and outside the pavilion. Jeon Hyeong-yoon, an activist opposed to Japanese occupation, inscribed the outside plaque in 1928. And Syngman Rhee, South Korea’s first strongman president, wrote the inside plaque in 1953.
Poems celebrating Cheonggan beauty adorn the pavilion’s inner rafters, including a handwritten, two-line poem by former President Choi Kyu-ha upon the pavilion’s restoration in 1980.
View
Like other seaside pavilions, Cheonggan earns its fame from the sun and moon rises that emerge from the East Sea’s distant horizon. But its scenery, often regarded as one of Gangwon Province’s most picturesque, boasts an impressive view of diverse surroundings.
- Just below the pavilion’s craggy cliffs lies Cheonggan Stream (천진천; map) that winds through the landscape and meets the salty waves of the East Sea. Beside the fresh waters lives a maze of fertile farms and diverse thriving ecosystems.
- Westward, looking inland, find Seorak Mountain and the Taebaek Mountains’ stegosaurus-like ridges parading down Korea’s coastline.
- To the south, view decades-old military fencing — coastal protections put up after several North Korean infiltrations — and Cheonjin Beach (천진해변; map), which nestles against the quaint seaside Cheonjin Village (천진리; map).
- To the east, glimpse the vast waters of the East Sea from Cheonggan Pavilion’s elevated platform.