The Weekly Chosun ran another lovely pen sketch by Kim Yeong-taek, this time of the Cheongam Pavilion of Daksil Village, Bonghwa County, North Gyeongsang Province.
Daksil Village is famous for its rice cakes — from the KNTO’s website:
Korean cakes are a must for the ceremonies of marriage and 60th birthday as well as ancestral worship. The reason for the fame of Daksil Village’s Korean cakes lies in the fact that they succeed to the 500-year tradition of craftsmanship, each one of them is made by manual work and they are only custom-produced.
The tradition of Daksil-maeul cakes started when Premier Gwon Beol (1478-1548), given the pseudonym of Chungjae (Loyal Minister), during the reign of King Jungjong of Yi Dynasty placed the residence of his head family here. The residence of the head family still hold memorial rites of Bulcheon-wi to pay homage to Scholar Chungjae, thus the tradition of making these Korean cakes.
In preparing the offerings for the memorial ceremony, the Korean cakes are what receive the greatest attention and devotion. All of them must have their own individual colors, shapes and tastes. Such manufacturing skills have been propagating among the villagers, resulting today in the prosperous industry symbolic of the village.
Bonghwa is also the hometown of Korean film director Kim Ki-duk.
