The present paper is a comprehensive study on printed illustrations (banchado) produced during the performance of state rituals in the Joseon period. These prints, similar to processions paintings, are illustrations of a ritual parade, where government officials, the royal guard, the ceremonial implements and palanquins, mobilized for the event, are represented in strict accordance to their position in the procession ranks. 176 of them are presently extant in the form of royal protocols (Uigwe) and 30 ― as separate scrolls. The present form of pictorial banchado developed from an earlier version, where the elements of the procession were only denoted with Chinese characters (字圖, word-pictures) while pictures of human figures and palanquins, accompanied with small word designations, were later added.
These printed illustrations, or Robudo (鹵簿圖, Illustrations of the Royal Guard of Honor), called to enhance the dignity of the state rituals, are visual materials unique to the Joseon Dynasty. They are assumed to have been developed in the process of maintaining the Hyungnye (凶禮, Sorrowful rites) during the early Joseon period in order to clearly grasp the general picture of the procession for better arrangement, and to have spread later to other state rituals.
During the Joseon Dynasty, every time when a state rite was performed, a temporary office called Dogam (都監) was established, with the task to plan and carry out the ritual. After the end of the ceremony, the Dogam recorded the whole process in Uigwe (儀軌, Royal protocols). Before the ritual, based on its status and scale, the Dogam produced two printed illustrations containing notes on the rite from the Yejo (禮曹, Ministry of Rites), a list with the names of the government officials called to participate, and guidelines for the royal guard from the Byeongjo (兵曹, Ministry of War). The first print was presented to the king for approval (內入班次圖) while the second print was kept in the Dogam and used as guidelines for the procession alignment (都監班次圖). The print for the Uigwe was made after the end of the ritual, when all the materials were gathered and the royal protocol was compiled. It contained also a replica of the first print given to the king. The banchado for the royal protocol was not a pictorial representation of the actual scene of the procession, but a reproduction of the print produced before the ritual.
The composition of the processions in banchado differs, depending on the rite. The illustrated protocols of state funerals show the procession to the mountain tomb with palanquins containing the spirit tablet (魂帛), the coffin (梓宮), ceremonial objects (冊寶類) and burial objects (副葬品) enshrined before in the Spirit-tablet Hall (殯殿). The illustration produced during the Bumyo ritual (祔廟, Enshrinement in Jongmyo) shows the procession bringing the memorial tablets and the ceremonial objects from the Spirit Hall (honjeon) into the Jongmyo royal shrine after the Damje (禫祭, a ceremonial offering on the 27th month after a state funeral). When the location of the royal tomb was changed, a procession similar to the funeral cortege was also organized but instead of a spirit tablet, a drawing of the tablet on paper was placed into the palanquins.
The banchado produced during Garye (嘉禮, Felicitous Rites) shows the procession of the bride from her temporary residence, the Byeolgung (別宮), to the palace, for the Dongnoe-yeon (同牢宴, the banquet for the royal couple’s formal wedding vow). After the wedding ceremony of King Yeongjo (1724-1776) and Queen Jeongsun in 1759, the rite of Chinyeong (親迎) was adopted, when the king personally inducted his bride into the palace, which found its place in the royal protocol illustrations as well (親迎擧動班次圖). The illustrated prints related to the investiture ceremony (Chaegnye, 冊禮) show the procession bringing to the palace the royal attributes ― the order for investiture by the king, the seal and the royal books, as well as the palanquin and the ceremonial implements of the crown-prince. The banchado produced during the rituals of worship and posthumous veneration represent the procession of taking the jade book and the golden seal with the posthumous title of the deceased king into the palace, or to the place where his body or memorial tablet was enshrined (the palace or the Jongmyo shrine).
The composition of these printed illustrations consists of three layers. In the central row are depicted important ceremonial implements, such as parasols and fans on long bamboo poles, palanquins with the royal regalia, such as jade books, the seal, or with the royal coffin. In the upper and lower row are situated other members of the procession ― ushers, eunuchs, holders of ceremonial implements. The figures in the central row are represented facing frontward, from the back, as if lying flat on the picture plane, while the palanquins are shown from a side view, or as three-dimensional objects. The ceremonial implements holders and the royal guard from the upper and lower rows are depicted facing the central row. Such specific way of portrayal was typical for the visual interpretation of the actual processions which centered on the middle row, with the royal guard and implement holders, arranged on both sides.
The extant Uigwe banchado (illustrations included in royal protocols) can be divided into four types, depending on the procession arrangement and the formal expression.
First, the period from the 17th century until the reign of King Gyeongjong in the early 18th century, was the time when the banchado of the main state rituals were designed and produced. Banchado produced during the time of King Sunjo (1567-1608) and Gwanghegun (1608-1623) were simple and centered on rituals of worship and the reception of envoys from Ming China.
From the time of King Injo (1623-1649) illustrated prints were produced during all important events ― auspicious ceremonies, investiture rituals or sorrowful rites, such as state funerals, tomb processions and enshrinement of memorial tablets in the Jongmyo shrine. The prints from that time are concise, the royal guard being depicted in single file, while the rows with the officials in charge of the ceremony and the officials with temporal duties were omitted. In addition, illustrations of royal funerary processions or enshrinement in the Jongmyo shrine did not exhibit the Gomyeong (a document approving the king’s enthronement), received from Qing China. They show the modified form of the ritual after the collapse of the Ming dynasty
The printed illustrations take an unregulated and simplified form until the mid-17th century. With the funeral ceremony of King Hyojong (1649-1659) in 1659, the picture plane obtained clear arrangement, the expression became formalized and the three-tier composition was fixated. The manufacturing process was greatly improved by the ingakchaesaekbeop (woodcarving and painting) technique introduced at that time, where the images were carved and printed, while the headgear of the officials and the implements were painted. This technique, introduced during the enshrinement ritual of King Hyojong in the Jongmyo shrine, continued into the late 17th century and developed, so that the figures of the men, the horses, the palanquins and the palanquin bearers were carved simultaneously.
All figures in procession illustrations from this period were only outlined while their movements and facial features were not depicted. The palanquins in the central row were represented in quadrangle cross section with their shafts drawn in horizontal and vertical strokes, similar to the character 井. Т he palanquin bearers were depicted in specific flat two-dimensional composition around this 井 structure ― the front figures in the front side and the back figures piled up on the top. At the same time, while the Uigwe made especially for the king (御覽用儀軌) followed the composition and the spatial structure typical for the illustrations of the time, it was produced only by minutely copying and coloring the shapes by hand, without applying the woodcarving and painting technique.
Second, in the 18th century, during the rule of the kings Yeongjo and Jeongjo (1776-1880), with the modification of the state rituals and the strengthening of the king’s power, banchado became more actively utilized. This was the time, when newly composed illustrations of the rituals of reverence and worship, the enshrinement of the portrait of the deceased king or carrying of his memorial tablet from the Jongmyo shrine started to appear, and the processions of the ruling king were first depicted as protocol illustrations. The stay of the king at the Hwaseong fortress during his journey in 1795 (華城園幸) was also designed as independent procession painting. Illustrations of the rituals considered especially important by the king were made for the use of the government officials, or were standardized as Buna banchado (分兒 班次圖, Authorized Banchado for a training manual) and actively used in the procession arrangement. Thus, the illustrations of this period functioned as a means to exert the king’s authority regarding important ceremonies, enhanced the solemnity of state rituals and contributed to the reinforcement of the king’s power.
In the 18th century, banchado shows tendency towards accurate representation of the procession and clearly exposing the social rank of the participants. The royal guard standing abreast was modified to three cohorts’ formation while to each palanquin, an entourage with the official in charge of it, was attached. In terms of formal expression, while the multi-view three tier composition was maintained, a change is visible in the representation of the central row palanquins. In accord with the three-dimensional depiction of the palanquins, their shafts were arranged in parallel and diagonal lines and the bearers ― in diagonal disposition, which brought a more realistic sense of space in palanquin procession representation. Various advances in technique are noticeable, such as rendition of body movements, figures in three-quarter view and engraving of the sedan chairs and their bearers, the palanquins for the ancestral tablets (yoyeo) and for ritual items (chaeyeo) and their bearers, as three-dimensional solid objects. The 17th century trend of flatness of the central row palanquin images was replaced with more realistic sense of space in the 18th century, which demonstrates a change in the technique of the court painters. From the middle of the century this was applied to all royal protocol paintings.
Third, in the 19th century, banchado reflected the weakening of the royal power and the intensification of the political heavyweights’ domination of the time. The form of banchado followed traditional patterns, while new compositions were not created. During the regency of the queen grandmother, who ruled instead of her young grandson, the outlines of
banchado made for general distribution were replaced with woodblock prints and the Uigwe for the king was created by woodcarving and painting technique, showing a tendency to stereotyping.
During the time of King Cheoljong (1849-1863) and King Gojong (1863-1907), with the intensification of the political heavyweights’ domination, the importance of banchado related to rituals of worship increased. A large number of soldiers were mobilized in the royal palanquin wedding procession. In order to raise the solemnity of the ceremony, the number of soldiers of the royal guard taking part in it was increased, especially in auspicious ceremonies. The representation of the royal guard in illustrations of auspicious ceremonies influenced those representing mourning processions of carrying the coffin, and brought about an increase of the number of banchado pages. Furthermore, the illustrations from the second half of the 19th century reflect the changes in auspicious state rituals at the time, such as the procession of the Palace matron (Sanggung, 尙宮) seated on a palanquin held by eight bearers, or the processions of the parents of the monarch during the wedding ceremony of King Gojong and Queen Myeongseong.
In terms of expression, after the 1830s a certain formal improvement of completion degree is detectable. Figures became slightly larger, the facial features started to appear and the proportions became more accurate. Figures were shown from the back or from side view with different colors of the garment and different movements, depending on their role in the procession. Furthermore, every flag and ceremonial implement was engraved. The flags with funeral odes (manjang) and the soldiers holding them, the carts containing funeral aroma vessels (hyangjeongja), the palanquins for the memorial tablets (yoyeo) and ritual items (chaeyeo), the cart with the spirit tablet (sinyeon) and the empty royal cart (puryeon) with their bearers were engraved on one plate.
The arrangement of the shafts of the palanquins and the bearers from the central row followed the diagonal- and parallel-lined composition from the 18th century, but the proportions of the figures and the correlation of the objects became more natural. In this way, various movements were expressed and a more realistic and natural composition was achieved. Thus, compared to the 18th century, the 19th century banchado demonstrates a more refined expression mode. At the same time, banchado from the time of the kings Cheoljong and Gojong in the second half of the 19th century does not show attempts for introducing new models and followed the versions created in the previous century, which led to a noticeable decline in their quality. Nonetheless, amid the movement for strengthening of the king’s power in Gojong time, a series of king’s outings procession illustrations were created, such as Dongga-banchado (Royal Palanquin Procession), Gyeongjinhaenghaeng-banchado (Royal procession to Gyeongjin), Daehanjeguk-donggado (Royal procession of the Korean Empire), etc. They were produced with reference to royal journey paintings from the times of Jeongjo and expressed the authority and power of the royal family by recording such scenes as the processions of the royal family to the Jongmyo shrine for worship, or through emphasizing the raising military power in representations of the personal inspection of the army by the king.
Fourth, in the period of the Korean Empire (1898-1910), with the rise of the country’s status, the new ceremonial outfit of the royal guard and the new government and military system found their reflection in banchado. Great importance was attached to illustrations of the ceremony of proclamation of the empire, the state funeral of Empress Myeongseong, and the creation of portraits of the previous kings. In 1897, during the proclamation of the empire, the color of the ceremonial flags and palanquins was changed to yellow while imperial flags and a pongyeo (palanquin decorated with phoenixes) were arranged during the mourning procession with the coffin of Empress Myeongseong. After the royal banquet in 1901 celebrating the 50th anniversary of Gojong, the new ceremonial implements of the empire such as triangle, round and square shaped ceremonial flags were arranged for the main members of the imperial court ― the emperor, the crown prince, the crown princess and the empress, but could not attain the level of an organized system. Although the attire of the government officials and the royal guard was changed into modern costumes and headgear, the engraving technique could not reach such level of plasticity and borrowed the forms coined in the previous century. After the abolishment of the Dohwaseo (The Bureau of Painting), charge of banchado took inexperienced painters, who did not have the capacity for new developments in the genre.
The thirty banchado extant in the form of separate scrolls were mostly produced in the period between the first half of the 18th century and the Korean empire and are thought to have been presented to the king before the ceremony, or used in the Dogam. Their procession arrangement is identical with the Uigwe illustrations. The details in banchado designed for the king were carefully rendered and colored, and demonstrate a high level of perfection. At the same time, the creation of haenghaengdo (行幸圖, illustrations of royal journeys) recording the actual processions of the king’s outings, was limited to the times of the kings Jeongjo and Gojong. 〔translation Nelly Russ〕