Hemp cord sandals, or mituri, are from the Joseon Dynasty. Hemp, made of linen shells, was used in everyday life. The mituri in the picture is a pair of shoes which some woman from an upper class yangban aristocratic family living in Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, in the late 16the century wore. She included her own hair in the shoes, in a belief that it would extend her husband’s life.
Joseon is a country that existed prior to the Republic of Korea.
It is the nearest nation to the Korea of today, but it’s hard to fathom its detailed looks. A lot of things happened and broke the traditions while going through severe changes, such as wars and the colonial era. Relics, ruins and documents were damaged.
Paradoxically, due to the relics and the remains that were recently discovered, the Joseon era can now reveal its truth.
In 1998, unconnected cemeteries were moved while housing development took place in Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province. While one of the graves was moved, a vivid look at the Joseon era of the 16th century was shown. In the tomb, dozens of clothing items from the 16th century were discovered, such as living apparel, ranging from adults to children, and their mourning clothes, which were excavated without damage. It was surprising that a piece of a letter was put on the body of a young man and it was still there.
“You were always telling me. ”Dear, we will live to grow our hair gray till the same one day when you and I die together.’ Then why should you go ahead, leaving me alone behind? Why should you when my little children and I have no one to rely on for the life ahead of us? Do you still remember how your heart dwelt in mind and my heart in yours? I used to say to you when we were together for the night, ‘Can other people care for and love each other as we do? Can they. really the same way as we do?’ How could you leave me in this way, without taking any consideration?……”
This is a letter written 430 years ago by a wife showing her love and sadness, placed with her husband’s body. Love is shown to be a universal human emotion that transcends time and space.
Jo Gyu-bok, a curator at the Andong National University Museum, explains married life with a vivid background in front of relics excavated from ancient tombs of the Joseon Dynasty from the 16th century.
The owner of the tomb was Lee Eung-tae (이응태, 李應台) (1556-1586) who died at the young age of 31. His wife wrote the letter. She has no name and is just called Woni‘s Mom which is just an extension of her son’s name. She did everything she could to extend her husband’s life a bit, a life that was fading away. In the most desperate of hopes, she cut her hair and made a pair of mituri and called upon heaven for help. Despite her utmost sincerity, her husband did not put them on and died. She expressed her earnest mind that she wanted to be together, even though he parted, hence her writing in the letter that, “Even if you are not to try on these shoes, I will nonetheless put them at your side.”
In the meantime, there are a few items through which we can recognize the real life of the Joseon Dynasty because numerous cultural heritage items were destroyed by the Japanese invasion over seven years in the 16th century. In particular, Hangeul letters written by women are materials that indicate the reality of married life at the time. Jo Gyu-bok, an curator at the Andong National University Museum, said, “It is a future project to investigate and reveal how Hangeul was made in the 15th century and how it got into general circulation in just 100 years, so women used it with adroitness.”
By Wi Tack-whan, Son Gina
Korea.net Staff Writers
Photos: Wi Tack-whan
whan23@korea.kr
