"Where Did the Matchlock Come From?" ... Gyeongbuk Sangju Museum Holds Small Exhibition 'The Appearance of the Jochong (鳥銃)'

The 16th Small Exhibition "The Appearance of the Arquebus" is being held at the Sangju Museum in Gyeongbuk.

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Kim Yong-woo] The young lord of the southern Japanese island, ‘Tanegashima Tokitaka,’ acquired the ‘cheolpo’ (matchlock gun) from Westerners, which was developed into a new weapon and later used as a tool to invade Joseon territory.

This new weapon was hidden tightly under the roof of the house of the descendants of the Imjin War militia and appeared to the world about 50 years ago. It is the ‘jochong’ (matchlock gun) that brought the humiliation of having the country’s land occupied for over seven years from the Imjin War to the Jeongyu War during the Joseon Dynasty. There is an exhibition where you can see this jochong.

The 16th small exhibition, ‘The Appearance of Jochong (鳥銃),’ has started at the Sangju Museum in Gyeongbuk.

This ‘small exhibition’ opened on the 22nd and will be held in the museum lobby until January 9 of next year.

The exhibited jochong and sword were each discovered in the 1970s while repairing the roof of the house of the descendants of Hong Yak-chang (洪約昌), who was active as a militia during the Imjin War, in Gonggeom, Sangju.

These artifacts have been kept at the Gyeongbuk National University Museum.

This exhibition explores when and how the jochong was introduced to Korea and examines its historical significance.

For the first time, the exhibition also publicly displays a facsimile of the Tamna Sunryeokdo (耽羅巡歷圖), which has been difficult to see at the Sangju Museum until now.

Yoon Ho-pil, director of the Sangju Museum, said, “You can glimpse the ripple effects of how the appearance of the jochong brought changes to Korea’s weapon system and military organization, and through the ‘small exhibition’ planning, we plan to reveal various artifacts.”