Establishment and Poetic imagery of Yukyuk-dong, a scenic spot in Pyeongan-do in the Late Joseon Dynasty

This article introduces Yukyuk-dong (or thirty six Dongcheon) in Samdeung-hyeon, which was highlighted in the 19th century as one of the famous scenic spots in Pyeongan-do, and explains the origins of the names of the 36 Dongcheon and the characteristics of the Chinese poem ‘Yukyuk- dong’ created based on each Dongcheon. The extant Chinese poems based on Yukyuk-dong were mostly written in the 19th century, and the tendency of some writers to form a series of 36 poems is captured. Eom Gi (1760~1820), who first gave names to the 36 Dongcheon in Yukyuk-dong at the end of the 18th century, revealed the origins of each Dongcheon and reproduced the actual scenery into 36 poems composed in seven-word verse. While projecting legends related to immortals, he paid attention to topographical characteristics such as strangely shaped rocks, cliffs, waterfalls, and the unique flow of rivers, and expressed each Dongcheon by reflecting the natural phenomena or human activities he captured. Eom Gi's poem had a profound influence on the creation of a series of poems by the group of Shin Heon, Jo Yeon-myeong, Kim Hyeon-eung, and Lee Heon-myeong while touring Yukyuk-dong in 1837. Each of these four people's exchanging poems is compiled together with Eom Gi's poem under the title Yukyuk Yeonhwa, and generally uses materials similar to Eom Gi's to establish the image of Yukyuk-dong. Meanwhile, in the early 19th century, Shin Wi (1769~1845), Jo Deuk- young (1762~1824), and Jeong Won-yong (1783~1873), each wrote 36 poems composed in five-word verse to describe Yukyuk-dong. They connected the history of immortals and Buddhist legends, Chinese writers, and place names etc with the poems but embodied in different content from Eom Gi's poem. The series of ‘Yukyuk-dong’ poems created by 19th century writers not only contributed to securing the status of Yukyuk-dong as a scenic spot, but are also significant in that they show an aspect of the cultural phenomenon of discovery and enjoyment of scenic spots.