"Gangjin Celadon Festival", 2018 Best Festival of Korea by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism

Gangjin Celadon Festival, the 'Best Festival of Korea' by Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, is held in cheer in the Goryeo Celadon Museum in July - August each year. This celadon culture and art festival is a highly dignified festival that satisfies cultural and artistic values and popularity at the same time with programs such as firing of kiln, sales of premium celadon, celadon-making classes and special exhibition of Goryeo celadon artifact.

Mysterious Celadon

Goryeo celadon is a representative porcelain artwork of Korea and one of the sources of pride in the culture and art history of Korea. The inlaid design in celadon green is expressed as the ultimate technique and beauty and has been praised as a heavenly standard beyond artificial. Celadon has been produced since 5th - 6th century in China, and since 8th - 9th century in Korea. This was when in Gangjin, under the influence of the ambassador Jang Bogo who actively traded with China in Cheonghaejin, 20km apart from Gangjin, the production began in Yongun-ri, Daegu-myeon, Gangjin-gun, and celadon has been mass produced in the mountain bottom stretching over 6km from Jeongsusa Temple in Daegu-myeon to Misan for 500 years in Goryeo Dynasty until the decline in 14th century.

Around 80% of national treasures and treasures of Korea were made in Gangjin, and most of the artifacts preserved worldwide as valuable goods were made in Gangjin. Gangjin is a distributor of celadon with around 200 historic kilns out of around 400 historic kilns discovered in Korea located in Gangjin. Gangjin could develop celadon culture because it had developed marine transportation and better conditions such as clay, fuel, water quality and climate than other regions.

"Gangjin, the Top Destination in Namdo" in search for 1,000 years mystery

Gangjin-gun, in order to spread the pride of cultural county people who blossomed celadon culture for about 500 years from the origin to decline of celadon, and to promote local economy and provide the framework of local development by holding a unique and characteristic festival in connection with the cultural and tourism resources of the region, has held the first Celadon Culture Festival in September 1996 by renaming and restarting from the "Geumneung Culture Festival" that has been held since 1973.

Pride of county people for 500-year celadon culture