Jongmyo’s long, spare shrine halls preserve the ritual landscape of Joseon royal ancestor worship. Tablets of kings and queens are enshrined here, and ceremonies combining music, song, and dance continue a tradition that has endured through war and political change.
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The main hall’s extraordinary length gives the shrine a different presence from the ornate palaces nearby. Jongmyo was built to house spirit tablets of Joseon kings and queens, and its restrained architecture reflects the solemn purpose of ancestral rites.
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UpgradeQuick facts
- Jongmyo houses spirit tablets of Joseon kings and queens.
- Its current form dates largely to rebuilding in the early seventeenth century.
- Royal ancestral rites with ritual music and dance continue at the shrine.
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