New and Old Style Astronomical chart

A unique astronomical chart that compiles a
traditional astronomical map from the early Joseon Dynasty (the Map of the
Astronomical Order) and a Western astronomical map from after the 17th century (the New
Astronomical Chart)
next to each other on folding screens.

New and Old Astronomical Chart (Republic of Korea/Joseon Dynasty) by unknownNational Folk Museum of Korea

Korea's
only 8-panel folding screen astronomical chart.

This astronomical chart was created by a new
dynasty to publicly announce that the new government would honor the will of
the gods and serve the people. Created in the fourth year of Taejo's reign (in 1395), the Map of the Astronomical Order was mainly used during the Joseon
Dynasty. After
the 17th century, the Western New Astronomical Chart
was introduced by the delegation sent to the Qing Dynasty.The
New and Old Astronomical Chart is a folding screen astronomical chart that
combines both types of astronomical charts from the early and late Joseon
Dynasty. This chart is significant because it reflected the scientific
knowledge and vision of the universe of the Joseon Dynasty in the early 18th
century, when they endeavored to create an astronomical map depicting the
universe as accurately as possible.

Map<br>of the Astronomical Order

In the 8-panel astronomical map, the Map of the Astronomical Order is on the third panel from the right. In this map, the equator is at the center. The constellations in the north and south of the celestial sphere are drawn together in a circle, according to the traditional method.

The name of each astronomical map is written,

along with a diagram explaining its significance and method of production.

The celestial sphere has a total of 287 constellations and 1,406 stars, painted in black, red, and yellow.

The Milky Way is painted in light blue, and the circles indicating the equator and the ecliptic are painted in red and yellow respectively.

Astronomical
Map of the North and South of the Ecliptic

The next 4 panels of the map
show the Astronomical Map of the North and South of the Ecliptic, where the
ecliptic divides the celestial sphere into north and south. The
constellations in each are shown in separate circles. The fourth and fifth panels of the map are the Astronomical Map of the North of the
Ecliptic, and the
sixth and seventh panels are the Astronomical Map of the
South of the Ecliptic.

The Astronomical Map of the North and South of the Ecliptic was a new kind of astronomical map, inspired by the Astronomical Map of the Ecliptic that was created by Ignaz Kögler, a German Jesuit missionary.

The last part of the chart clearly records the names of its creators, stating: "In the first year of Yongzheng's reign in 1723 (the third year of Gyeongjong's reign), Kögler (Chinese name: Dai Jinxian) established this method, and 200 people were involved in its production."

With the new method for producing astronomical maps, the stars were drawn in 6 different sizes according to their brightness.

Astronomical
Map of the Sun, Moon, and Five Planets

The final, eighth
panel of the map is the Astronomical Map of the Sun, Moon, and Five Planets. It
shows the sun, moon, and the five planets that could be
identified through a telescope (Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, and
Mercury, from top to bottom).

The satellites of Saturn and Jupiter are also clearly drawn. For example, to the right of Jupiter are 4 satellites that were discovered from 1609 to 1610 by Galileo Galilei.

The traditional names of the 5 planets are given: Jinseong (Saturn, 鎭星), Seseong (Jupiter), Hyeonghok (Mars), Taebaek (Venus), and Jinseong (Mercury, 辰星). This shows that the combined astronomical map is a transitional work that was created a little earlier than the New Astronomical Chart, named Treasure No. 848 by the Korean government.

National
Folk Museum of Korea

You can find Treasure No. 1318, the New and Old Astronomical Chart, in the "History of the Korean People" exhibition in Exhibition Hall 1.

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