Traveling Through Cheongju's Record Culture: 8 Sites from Jikji to Metal Type

Cheongju's record culture becomes richer when we focus on the process of how printing technology replicates and conveys knowledge, rather than just the fame of a single book, Jikji. At Heungdeoksa Temple, we can confirm the historical significance of the place where Jikji was published, and at the Old Printing Museum and the Metal Typecasting Experience Center, we can learn about the principles of producing woodblocks and metal types. The Modern Printing Exhibition Hall showcases the technological changes from movable type to modern printing.

In the latter part of the tour, we broaden the scope of records through the National Cheongju Museum and university museums. Not only letters, but also pottery, documents, and archaeological materials serve as media to preserve and interpret the past. The Sinbong-dong Ancient Tombs are a concluding spot where we can see the actual terrain from which the materials presented in the exhibition were excavated. The four sites in the Jikji Cultural Zone can be grouped together for walking, and for the other museums, we should check their operating days and campus entry conditions to arrange them separately.

Starting from the empty lot of Heungdeoksa Temple and going through typecasting and printing machines reveals that records are not just completed products, but rather a collaboration of places, materials, technologies, and people. The national and university museums play a role in classifying and interpreting the remaining materials and passing them on to the next generation. If we follow through to the Sinbong-dong Ancient Tombs, we can also understand the relationship between the excavation sites and the storage and exhibition spaces.

Printing experiences and guided tours can be operated separately and by reservation. The university museums have varying opening hours depending on the academic calendar, so it's best to check before visiting. Instead of just memorizing the year of Jikji, let's ask questions about the materials of the type, the order of typesetting, and the roles of paper, ink, and reproductions in the exhibition halls. If we record one production step or preservation method at each location, Cheongju's record culture will remain a living technological history.