Conservation and Management for Cultural Landscape of Royal Tombs Area in the Joseon Dynasty

Seoul has been the former capital from Joseon founded in 1932 by this time for 600 years. Seoul populated by some 10,290,000 people is the largest city in Korea. There are lots of cultural inheritance such as the castle town and 5 palaces including Gyeongbokgung in Seoul. Especially neungs(royal tombs) from 27 generations of king and queen in the Joseon dynasty during 518 years are very important cultural inheritance. The royal tombs were built from the castle town to the radius outside 4km within 40km pivoting on Seoul. Joseon royal tombs might have significant cultural value, which are representative Korean people's spirits for ancestor worship. After the 1945 Liberation of Korea those are having been managed by Office of Cultural Properties after Ministry of Education. This paper tried to find the changing process of the conservation and maintenance, the location of royal tomb area, the changing process of royal tomb, the area changing clue of modernization process, and in the historical city, Seoul. The royal tombs in the Joseon dynasty of the radius outside 4km within 40km pivoting on Seoul have been contributed to providing the metropolitan, Seoul population with the cultural and green spaces for 600 years. In the Joseon dynasty the royal tombs had been taken charge of thoroughly by the Royal Household with Neungchamboing system from Confucian background for ancestor worship. There after they had been damaged somewhat by the Japanese Imperialism period, the Korean War, and the pressure of urbanization. But the original state has been preserved well by state management. The royal tombs in the Joseon dynasty has been kept the culture of royal tomb's and memorial services with stone sculptures for 518 years. Also there are lots of documentary records of royal tombs. The memorial services of the tombs are held by Jongyakwon of Jeonju Lee family every year. The royal tombs somewhat damaged are needed to the original state of the transferred right of managing agency by the related national bodies.