Yanghwajin, a major ferry crossing on the western Han River, and Jamdubong, a peak known for its beautiful scenery, were once important gateways to Hanyang during the Joseon Dynasty and celebrated scenic spots along the Han River frequented by numerous writers and painters.
This peaceful place became a site holding the blood-stained martyrdom history of the Korean Catholic Church through the Byeongin Persecution, a large-scale suppression of Catholicism in Joseon in 1866. It was after this that Jamdubong (蠶頭峰), named for its resemblance to a silkworm's head, came to be called Jeoldusan (切頭山), meaning "the mountain of severed heads."
The Korean Catholic Martyrs' Museum, located at the Jeoldusan Martyrs' Shrine, opened the special exhibition "The Story of Yanghwajin and Jamdubong" on the 25th, marking the 160th anniversary of the Byeongin French Campaign and the Byeongin Persecution this year.
The exhibition sheds multidimensional light on the memories held by Yanghwajin and Jamdubong through various artifacts, records and video content.
The exhibition examines the natural scenery and cultural value of Yanghwajin and Jamdubong, which appear in works such as those of the painter Gyeomjae Jeong Seon, and explores the function and role of Yanghwajin along with the daily lives of those who made this place their home, centered on old maps and documentary materials. It then explains how this place became an important site in the history of Korean Catholic martyrdom through the Byeongin Persecution, in which 8,000 Catholics died, and the Byeongin French Campaign, and introduces the process by which the Jeoldusan Martyrs' Shrine was established and has continued to the present day.
The exhibition runs through September 27, with supplementary programs including humanities lectures, traditional craft experiences and field trips.
