| Title |
Reexamining the Creation of the God’s Garden at Buyeo Grand Shrine |
| Authors |
권오영(Kwon, Oh-Young) ; 김아람(Kim, Ah-Ram) ; 김영재(Kim, Young-Jae) |
| DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5659/JAIK.2024.40.9.147 |
| Keywords |
Buyeo Grand Shrine;Meiji Jingu Shrine;Joseon Grand Shrine;Hongo Takanori;Honda Seiroku;God’s Garden(Shinwon);Mixed Forest |
| Abstract |
This study explores the plan to construct the Buyeo Grand Shrine, a significant project initiated by the Japanese Government General of
Korea in the late 1930s. Governor-General Minami Jiro emphasized that, alongside the shrine's construction, the surrounding area known as
the God's Garden should be developed into a unified space that reflects the historical relationship between Japan and Korea. Due to its
importance, Takanori Hongo, who had previously led the creation of divine garden parks in Japan after the Meiji Jingu Shrine, played a key
role in developing the God's Garden at Buyeo Grand Shrine. Hongo, drawing on his studies in Germany, introduced German forestry and
ecological theories, promoting the cultivation of local vegetation and succession by planting trees suited to the region's climate. He advocated
for maintaining the God's Garden as a natural forest with minimal human intervention over time. The Buyeo Grand Shrine incorporated
German tree-planting techniques into the design of God's Garden, following the Meiji Jingu model introduced by Japanese scholars who had
studied in Germany. Although modern ecological theories were applied to create a natural forest, this effort was disconnected from the goal
of creating a landscape representative of all Korea. In fact, while promoting the architectural style of Buyeo Grand Shrine, the Japanese
government pushed for the adoption of a Joseon-style divine shrine, aiming to introduce a universal East Asian architectural form. Ultimately,
the Buyeo Grand Shrine appears to have been a rhetorical tool designed to deceive the people of Joseon, driven by imperial ambitions, and
intended to reinforce the structure of permanent colonial rule. |