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The Cultural Heritage Administration (CHA; Administrator: Choi EungChon) and the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation (OKCHF; Secretary General: Kim Kae Sik) will soon unveil the Epitaph Plaques for Kim Gyeong-on and the Epitaph Plaques for Yi Seong-rip that were donated by a private collectorbased in Japan. The plaques will be presented to the press at the Korean Studies Institute (Andong, Gyeongsangbuk-do Province) on September 28 at 11 a.m, followed by a donation and entrustment ceremony. 

*Epitaph Plaques for Kim Gyeong-on – White porcelain with cobalt-blue underglaze calligraphy / 1755, Joseon Dynasty / Dimensions: approx. 20×15.3×1.5㎝ (each) / complete set of five tablets

*Epitaph Plaques for Yi Seong-rip – White porcelain with iron-brown underglaze calligraphy / Late 17^th Century, Joseon Dynasty / Dimensions: approx. 22.8×18×1.6㎝ (each) / complete set of two tablets

Epitaph tablets are stone or ceramic plaques that record details of the life of a deceased person, including their achievements, character, and family relations. They possess significance for the study of not only the life history of deceased individual, but also the history of the times. The Epitaph Plaques for Kim Gyeong-on is a set that was produced in 1755 to commemorate Kim Gyeong-on (sobriquet: Dansa; 1692–1734). A descendant of the Uiseong Kim clan in Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, Kim was the grandson of Kim Seong-gu, who had served as governor (gwanchalsa) of Gangwon-do Province. In 1726 (the second year of the reign of King Yeongjo), Kim Gyeong-on was the top scorer in the Classics and Literary Licentiate Examination. He was subsequently appointed as a tomb keeper for the Geonwolleung Royal Tomb, but he soon resigned and returned to his hometown of Yean where he devoted himself to fostering young students.

The Epitaph Plaques for Kim Gyeong-on is a complete set comprised of five tablets made from white clay and painted with text in regular script using cobalt-blue underglaze. This set of epitaph plaques has great historical value in that it clearly indicates that white porcelain epitaph plaques with cobalt-blue underglaze were produced for private individuals at the official court kilns (bunwon).

The Epitaph Plaques for Yi Seong-rip commemorate Yi Seong-rip (1595–1662), who served as a military official during the Joseon Dynasty. According to the text on the plaques, Yi was a descendant of the Gyeongju Yi clan, was buried in Cheolsan, Pyongan-do Province, and was active in areas that are currently part of North Korea. The epitaph plaques are comprised of a set of two tablets, and though the content is more concise than typical examples, they are important materials for examining the lives of the people of the era, including ties established through marriage and the funerary rites for military officials who were active on the frontiers of Korea during the late seventeenth century. The plaques are characterized by the use of incision and iron-brown underglaze. They also feature holes that are presumed to have been intended for placing the tablets face to face and tying them together. These epitaph plaques are highly valuable for their rarity and the uniqueness of their production method.

The donation process began when the collector contacted the OKCHF to inform the organization of his possession of the plaques and to express his intention to donate them and have them returned to Korea. The exact period in which the two sets of epitaph plaques were taken out of the country are unknown, but they recently entered the Japanese market for cultural heritage items. The collector discovered and safeguarded them, but expressed his intention to donate them without any compensation or preconditions, stating his belief that “…epitaph plaques are relics that should rightfully be returned to Korea.” Upon confirming the intentions of the collector, the OKCHF contacted the original owners, identified as the Uiseong Kim clan and Gyeongju Yi clan based on the text on the plaques. They were informed of the fact that the plaques had been found in Japan, told of the collector’s desire to donate them, and engaged in discussions on plans for their utilization in South Korea.

The clans welcomed with gratitude the collector’s desire to donate them, and they gladly decided to entrust all matters regarding the epitaph plaques from their return to Korea to their future safeguarding and utilization. The Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Research Institution (Director: Shon InRak), which is conducting projects on Korean cultural heritage located abroad with a basis in Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, actively cooperated in the overall process of the return and entrustment of the epitaph plaques. The epitaph plaques will be entrusted to the Korean Studies Institute (President: Chong JongSup) and will be managed and utilized as important relics showing an aspect of the history of the Joseon Dynasty. Established in 1995 with the aim of systematically collecting, managing, and utilizing materials on Korean studies, the Korean Studies Institute is a research institution specialized in written cultural heritage.

The donation of the two sets of epitaph plaques is all the more meaningful in that it was realized through the good faith of the collector, the determination of the two clans to willingly entrust to the public their family treasures, and the close cooperation between institutions. The CHA and OKCHF plan to continue their strenuous efforts on behalf of the active search for, repatriation, protection, and utilization of important Korean cultural heritage objects held in overseas collections.