Jonggak and Bosingak that marked the beginning and end of the day

 In 1398, in the 7th year of King Taejo's year, the pavilion bell tower with a bell attached to the central part of the city wall, and the bell tower, were completed. In the modern era, streetcars were installed, and the streets became more bustling and settled as the center of Seoul. Due to the Japanese Invasion of Imjin War and fire, the bell tower was destroyed and the location and size of the bell tower were changed and rebuilt several times. After the new bell tower, which had many stories, was built in 1895 and a sign saying 'Bosingak' was hung, people started calling it the Bosingak Bell.

Treasures No. 1, No. 2, and No. 3 were selected as cultural properties in Jongno-gu, and Heunginjimun No. 1 is still in place. Only the old Bosingak bell, No. 2, was manufactured in 1468 and retains the shape of the bell from the early Joseon Dynasty. It was kept at Bosingak in Jongno, and now it is managed and moved to the grounds of the National Museum of Korea, Yongsan-gu, Seoul. The bell currently installed in Bosingak was newly produced in 1985 with donations from the people, and the first bell rang on Liberation Day on August 15 (inheriting the role of the old Bosingak bell, which became the second treasure), is still ringing as the 'New Year's Bell'. .

- Currently, the closest subway station to Bosingak is Jonggak Station on Line 1. In front of the Seoul Museum of History, 11 pieces of foundation stones, which were found under the pillars during the construction of the Seoul subway in 1972, are on display. It is a relic related to the bell tower, presumed to be in the early Joseon Dynasty. The size of the foundation stone appeared to be about 6 meters in circumference and 1 meter and 20 centimeters in height.

By naming the four gates of Seoul, 仁, righteousness, 禮, and 智 are connected one by one, and the remaining 'trust' among the five virtues spoken of in Confucianism is put into Bosingak, which strengthens the symbolism that the bell tower is at the center of the city. seems to be dropping it.

The name of the road in Jongno-gu that connects KT Gwanghwamun Building and the intersection in front of Jogyesa Temple is 'Sambong-ro'. If you walk along Sambong-ro, you will pass in front of Jongno-gu Office. There are three signposts in front of the building used as the ward office civil service office.

The private schools established at the end of the late Han Dynasty included many schools that focused on vocational technical education. I saw a sign indicating the site of the Sujin Surveying School, where surveying was taught as a specialized curriculum. It informs that this is the place where Yu Gil-jun established a surveying educational institution 1908-1909 by borrowing 'Sujingung', which was the private residence of Daegun Jean, son of King Yejong of the Joseon Dynasty. The other is a monument created to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the opening of the old parliament in 2011.

The last one informs us that it was the site of the residence of Jeong Do-jeon, who was an official of the founding of the Joseon Dynasty. The name of Jeong Do-jeon is 'Sambong'. If you look at a sign that tells the reason why the road passing in front of Jongno-gu Office was named Sambong-ro as a hint, you will eventually get a sneak peek at his 'ho' and 'name' related to 'road'.

Currently (to be completed in 2024), for the construction of the Jongno-gu Office new office building, a number of departments, including the gu office civil service office, have prepared and relocated a temporary ward office building to the nearby Daelim Building. Let's take a photo of the building that was used as the Jongno-gu Office civil service office before the building was dismantled. The sign indicates that there was a Sujin Surveying School in a part of the site where the Jongno-gu Office is located. The building used by Jongno-gu Office from 1977 to March 2021 was formerly used as Susong Elementary School. The school opened in 1922 and produced the 53rd (the last) graduate in February 1977, and the building used as the school has since been used as the ward office. The day when the pavilion was completed in 1398 and a bell made in Gwangju, Gyeonggi-do was hung on the bell tower, which was converted into the solar calendar as April 15th of the lunar calendar, was designated as 'Jongno-gu Residents' Day.' This year, the event was held simply online through Jongno TV, and the Jongno-gu Citizens Award was awarded to those who made a dedication in the areas of improving awareness of the disabled, voluntary crime prevention, unity among residents, promotion of physical education, and environmental protection. The event I was interested in was the calligraphy performance.

儉而不陋 華而不侈 left through calligraphy as if it contained the heart for the completion of the new building.

*Swords and blotches: Frugal but not shabby, glamorous but not luxurious. When the new Jongno-gu Office is complete, the Seoul Fire and Disaster Headquarters, Seoul Disaster Prevention Center, and Jongno Fire Station are scheduled to move in together, so it will take control of Seoul’s disaster response in three years. The role of the tower is expected.