조선 중기 왕실 제례용 백자향로의 특징과 의미

Abstract

This thesis studied the character and meanings of white porcelain incense burners used as the royal ritual vessels in the Mid Joseon Period (1550~1700) by taking note of them and analyzing the process of the objects’manufacture and use. The white porcelain incense burners for royal ancestral rites in the Joseon Dynasty have been known as being manufactured starting from No. 21 Beoncheon-ri (1420~40). For the formativeness of white porcelain incense burners for ancestral rites which were then manufactured, they can be found to copy Yugejeong (有蓋鼎), one of ancient bronzeware. The use of the lids and Noshin (爐身) is noticeable and the surface of the objects is characterized by manufacture without any patterns (無紋) as they are not decorated. the white porcelain incense burners manufactured like this were understood to be used in funeral rites and religious services to heaven of royal ancestral rites. This means that the white porcelain incense burners called Sogi (plain white containers:素器) were used by taking note of their essential attributes. That is, the character of ceremonies and rites that the objects are used was considered and ritual vessels were prepared by the materials which accord with it. On the other hand, the molding and use of the white porcelain incense burners for royal ancestral rites established in the early Joseon Period continued until the mid Joseon Period, but they have found to be changes in the aspects of the manufacture and use. For the aspect of the manufacture, the overall aspect that the lids and Noshin were used together was inherited, but the tendency to be simplified gradually appeared by escaping from the original styles. The bottom part of Noshin was changed to high-footed pedestals, which are thought to be influenced by new manufacture tendencies of porcelain ritual vessels appearing after the 16th century. Especially in the case of the lids, the addition of new designs unlike the previous ones is noticeable. For the outlets to let the smoke out, signs of ‘Denebola (五帝座)’ which connect a flower pattern (花紋) to 4 roundels (圓紋) to be a cross were alternately placed on them. This is interpreted to be one of the ideas concerning death like examples of mortuary planks (七星板) used in funeral rites. However, the system without any patterns (無紋) which are not decorated still persisted in the white porcelain incense burners. This can be thought that the character of ancestral vessels for funeral rites called Sogi (素器) set up in the white porcelain incense burners was maintained and furthermore, the meaning got to be clearer. Examining the aspect of using the white porcelain incense burners manufactured in the Mid Joseon Period like this, they have found to be concentratively consumed in funeral rites. The white porcelain incense burners were just used in the process of a shroud ritual (殮襲儀禮) of the funeral rites and were changed to brass incense burners (鍮器香爐) in a royal coffin ritual (殯殿儀禮), the next stage. The point that materials of the incense burners used in the funeral rites were changed could be estimated to show the character of the rites to use them. The shroud ritual is the state which cannot raise the souls of deceased (亡者) who departed as the stage to be unable to accept their death. That is, the white porcelain incense burners which play a role of Sogi (素 器) used as the meaning of regarding the deceased as being alive can be thought to work as the device to represent conditions of the people who participate in the rites and at the same time, show the deceased who entered the stage of complete death yet. Like this, the white porcelain incense burners could be put together as changes of the styles and effects according to the settlement of the royal Confucian funeral rite system. The Buddhist rites which had been performed in the funeral rites became extinct due to Neo-Confucian literati (士林)’s appearance in the 16th century. And by the 17th century, ritual books (禮書) began to be compiled in earnest. The process like this is thought to have a natural effect on the objects for funeral rites. And especially the process is interlinked with the period when there were changes in manufacture of the white porcelain incense burners. Therefore, the changes in manufacture of the white porcelain incense burners can be thought to show the process that the funeral rite system got to be settled. In conclusion, the white porcelain incense burners for ancestral rites of this period can be put together as the point that the objects’ character and roles got to be clearer than the previous period.