Sosu Seowon

Sosu was founded in 1543, or 1542 by some accounts, by the magistrate Ju Se-bung to honour An Hyang, the scholar who brought Neo-Confucian learning to Korea from Yuan China, and it was the first private academy of its kind in the country. Seven years later it became the first to receive a royal charter with land, books and slaves - the precedent that made seowon a national institution and, eventually, a political force strong enough that most were abolished in the nineteenth century. Sosu was one of the few spared. It stands among several hundred red pines beside a stream, with the lecture hall, the shrine, dormitories and a library, and a portrait of An Hyang that is among the oldest surviving Korean portraits. On the site are also a stone flagpole support and a rock carving from Sukjusa, the Buddhist temple that stood here before - a reminder of what the academy was built on. A Confucian museum sits alongside.

History

The local magistrate Chu Sebung founded the academy in 1542, or 1543 by other accounts, as Baegundong Seowon on the site of a former Buddhist temple, at a time when Joseon was suppressing Buddhism and turning many temples to other uses. In 1550 it was renamed Sosu Seowon, and through Yi Hwang it became the first private academy in Korea with a royal charter. It is the oldest surviving seowon in the country and one of 47 that came through the regent Heungseon Daewongun's abolition of the academies in 1871 (Wikipedia, Sosu Seowon).

The main sights

• The pine grove - several hundred old red pines around the compound.
• The An Hyang portrait - among the oldest Korean portraits.
• The earlier temple traces - flagpole support and rock carving from Sukjusa.
• The Confucian museum - the seowon system explained.

When to go

April to June and October. Closed Mondays. Weekday mornings are quiet under the pines.

Things to know

Ticketed, unlike most seowon. The buildings are plain - Confucian academies were meant to be. Combining with Buseoksa temple, which is the region's other draw, makes the trip worthwhile.

Nearby

Buseoksa is 15 km north; Sobaeksan National Park is close.

Key facts