Monday, January 9, 2012

2012 The Year of the Dragon

According to the Chinese and the Korean beleives, the year 2012 is the year of the Dragon.




The dragon symbolizes courage, hope and soaring to new heights in Korean culture. This imaginary animal was a sign of dignity and authority of the royal family during the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910). Among commoners, images of dragons appeared on furniture, in paintings and porcelain, as they were believed to protect from misfortune.




The year 2012 is the Year of the Dragon, the National Folk Museum holds "Special Exhibition: The Year of the Dragon" through Feb. 27. The exhibition is themed “dragon and dream,” wishing everyone good luck for the New Year.



In the palaces, the dragon used to be the emblem of the king. The king used to wear royal robes with dragon designs and even the king's liquor jar was dragon-patterned. Those Paintings depicted the legends of dragons which are also on display. "Flag for Farmers' Music from Gimje" shows the dragon was considered as a god of water among commoners.






In the last section, students from special education classes of Nowon Middle School and Baekwoon Middle School created a dragon sculpture.

For more information, visit www.nfm.go.kr.

Source: The Korea Times

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