Jongmyo Jeryeak and Its Preservation Today.

Jongmyo, Seoul, the oldest Confucian imperial shrine preserved, is dedicated to the forefathers of the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910). Ritual ceremonies called Jongmyo Jerye were held five times a year here to pay tributes to the royal ancestors, and were deemed one of the most important rites for a state to perform. The accompanying Jongmyo Jeryeak music/dance performance was therefore understandably sol- emn and elaborate. During the Sejong's reign (r. 1419-1450), official Pak Yon attempted to reconstruct the ancient Chinese form of Jongmyo Jeryeak, but later on, Sejo (r. 1469-1494) decided to adopt two suites of music/dance, "Botaepyeong" and "Jeongdaeeop," as the new Jongmyo Jeryeak, and the practice lasted through all the succeeding generations. In 1962, Jongmyo Jeryeak became the first designated Important Intangible Cultural Property in the Republic of Korea, and since the 70s, the ceremony has been reinstated and held on the first Sunday of May, an open event that sees thousands of spectators lining the streets and the quiet sanctuary to celebrate. Internationally, Jongymo and the Annuals of Joseon were designated as World Heritage in 1995 and World Memory in 1997 respectively. In 2001, Jongmyo Jerye and Jongmyo Jeryeak were jointly proclaimed as Masterpiece of Human Oral and Intangible Heritage. Intangible cultural heritage refers to the practices, representations, expressions, knowledge and skills that people recognize as part of their cultural heritage. Its safeguarding requires taking community of practitioners and documentation into careful consideration. Thanks to the preservation of Jongmyo and the Annals, the original place and documentation, Jongmyo Jeryeak today can still be performed according to its "original form." The tangible context not only helps the intangible music/dance to be remembered, but to be "remembered correctly." However, we must also point out that, even with the physical framework relatively intact, the meaning of Jongmyo Jeryeak inevitably changes as newer shareholders come into the picture. Will the tangible context "fossilize" the intangible cultural heritage and confine it to the "original form" or "authenticity"? Or will tangible context act as the detailed archive that allows intangible cultural heritage to constantly be recreated without forgetting its earlier form? The aim of this paper is to examine the case of Jongmyo Jeryeak and discuss the role that tangible context plays in the fluidity of culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]