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Introduce
Numerous topics related to Korean culture and art are mentioned in middle and high school national history textbooks, but most of them are briefly described by era, making it difficult to understand their concepts, transition processes, and characteristics.
<Culture & Art Stories from Korean History> produces and provides video materials based on expert commentary on the flow, change process, characteristics and characteristics of each major topic in the field of culture and art in Korean history.
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Scenario

This year’s rice harvest has begun, and everyone is hoping for a good one. In the rice paddies, planning is already in full swing.

“Rice-planting machines came into use in the 1980s. By the 1990s, almost everyone was using them. They’re very effective. With a paddy this large, you have to till with a machine.” Choi Gukyung, President / Hyundai Farm & Land Development

From tilling the field to harvesting!
These days, there are many implements to help the farmer.
Yet, back in the old days, farming was an arduous job that had to be done by hand.
The tools that helped him were none other than the traditional farming implements.

Traditional farming implements varied by region and season. Let’s learn about Korean farming implements.

The Farm’s Hardest Worker, The Farming Implement

From ancient times, farming was the primary livelihood of Koreans. Many dedicated their entire lives to farming.

In the 3rdor 4th month of the lunar calendar, the farmer plows the field and plants seeds. In the 5th month, rice seedlings are planted. During the summer, the crops are tended to. When fall comes, farmers enjoy their harvest.

For each season a different tool is used.
In the spring, plowing equipment used for tilling the fields are the stars of the show. The main implements used are the plow, weederplow, pitchfork, and harrow.

In the summer, it was important to get rid of the weeds that grow alongside the crops. It was then that hoes were used.

When you needed to pull weeds or harvest, a sickle got the job done. They spun the flail around to help remove the grains from the stalks. The plow played a big, important role. Plows were used to break up the soil in a field. The plowshare that hung from the end of a plow dug into the earth, pushing up the soil and breaking it up.

“Gangwon-do is a very mountainous region. There are many terraced farms. Since the fields have been control burned, the ground is barren and stony. It’s too difficult for a single ox to plow, so we use two oxen.” Jo Seonggeun, President / Society for the Preservation of Hongcheon Gyeoritso Plowing Songs

Our ancestors considered plowing very important in farming. That’s why it’s said that a farmhand’s salary depended on how well he plowed.

“If a man was good at plowing, villagers would fight each other to offer him their daughters. That’s how important a good plower was.” Jo Seonggeun, President / Society for the Preservation of Hongcheon Gyeoritso Plowing Songs

Another useful farming tool was the A-frame.

“Instead of a car, an A-frame. These days, it’s a car. You can transport it by car, sure, but in the old days, if you didn’t have an A-frame, you couldn’t work.” Yeom Munseop / Gangwon-do Yanggu Jige Village

The stick in the A-frame played a very important role.
When carrying items, the triangular frame helped center the weight. When picking up the load, the rod helped reduce the load on the carrier’s legs to make it feel lighter and make standing up a lot easier.

Let’s take a look at the sickle.
The sickle is a tool used to prune or cut grass. It’s said the length of the blade and handle varied by region.

“The neck is longer in Gangwon-do. It needs to have more cutting power since it cuts down more trees. But as you move to flatter land, the neck gets shorter and the blade more angular. This is because in that region they cut more grass than trees.” Lee Gwangwon / Blacksmith

Implements like the hoe that are used more frequently, such as for weeding, have more variations.

“People change the shapes of their farming implements to match their needs, resulting in variations by region. The shape could also differ depending on the materials at hand.” Kim Jaegyun, Curator / Nonghyeop Museum of Agriculture

Traditional farming equipment, made ever so slightly differently depending on a region’s geography and culture. The implement made to fit a farmer’s hand is the most useful and is the hardest worker.

The Emergence of Metal Farming Tools and Farming Manuals

When did Koreans begin to use farming tools?
In the Neolithic period, when farming first arrived on the Korean Peninsula.

During this time period, farmers used stones, animal bones, or antlers. With the arrival of the Bronze Age, rice-farming technology spread to the peninsula, and people began farming more aggressively.

But it was around this time that people began to use wood or stone tools. The semicircle stone blade was the main farming tool in the Bronze Age. With the arrival of the Iron Age came huge changes in farming equipment. Between the 4th-6th centuries, the use of iron tools became more widespread and some farmers began to use oxen.

“We plowed the field with oxen for the first time.” - Samguk sagi (History of the Three Kingdoms), Silla bongi (Annals of Silla), 502 CE (Year 3 of Jijeung maripgan)

Iron Age tools increased agricultural productivity and had a great influence on the advancement of society. Agriculture became the cornerstone of the country’s economy, and as such, farming tools were considered that much more precious and valuable.

“When the people of Usangguk (Ulleungdo) were unable to plow their fields after attacks by northeastern Jurchen, Yi Wongu was sent to give them farming tools.” - Goryeosa (History of Goryeo), November 8, 1018 (Year 9 of King Hyeonjong)

A majority of farming equipment was developed during the early Joseon dynasty.

An interesting thing to mention are the texts on farming from the early Joseon period. These books were not works translated from Chinese, but rather written by Koreans about the Korean climate. The first book is the Nongsa jikseol.

“If the land is different, the way ones farms must be different. Thus, King Sejong ordered the purveyors of every province to listen carefully to the farmers of each province and to collect the farming techniques they use according to their region.“ - Introduction, Nongsa jikseol (Farm Order)

Following this, the Geumyang janok, Nongga wollyeong, and Sallim gyeongje were also compiled. These books were made to help the common people with farming methods, instruct the use of farming equipment, and offer other tips on systemizing farmwork.

In the 1960s, after the cultivator arrived, automated farming machines soon took over, and the use of traditional farming implements slowly disappeared.

But the sweat and hard work of the people of Korea put into each tool will be remembered by us for a very long time.

[Epilogue]
Must-Know Facts on Culture and Art in Korean History

1. In the Bronze Age, the main farming tool was the semicircular stone blade.
2. The main implement used to break up the soil in a field is the plow.
3. The Nongsa jikseol was the first farming book based on the Korean climate

Farming Implements