Go Korea - Then and now

Then and now

In this theme you can learn about Korean traditions that date back hundreds of years, see how these traditions blend with new ways of living, and draw comparisons with changing lifestyles in Australia. You can also read the story behind the four-kilometre-wide Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that separates North and South Korea, and the South Korean people's hopes for reunification in the future.


*The Tripitaka: famous Buddhist scriptures and movable metal type*	Chuseok: honouring ancestors	Love me, love me not

Buddhism is a major religion in Korea. This image shows Tripitaka, one of the world's oldest and most comprehensive collections of Buddhist scriptures. The individually engraved Tripitaka Koreana is almost eight hundred years old and is a Korean National Treasure. Korea is also credited with the earliest creation of moveable metal type.	In this image you see Korean graveside worship ritual at Chuseok, or the Harvest Moon Festival. Chuseok is one of Korea's most important national holidays, held on the fifteenth day of the eighth month by the lunar calendar (the full moon). It is a time to honour and show respect for ancestors using special rituals.	In traditional Korean society, marriages were arranged between two families and strict marriage rites were followed. Traditional marriages are no longer common in Korea, as people enjoy greater freedom to choose their own partner. Divorce or marriage breakdown, once uncommon in Korea, is now on the increase.




The Korean War: an artist's view		Ancient maps: understanding the past

In this image you can see two paintings depicting a Korean family: one before and the other after the Korean War (1950 - 1953). This image graphically shows the loss of life and turmoil the war inflicted on Korean families, and is a starting point for you to explore more about the war.		By looking at a Ancient maps we show can see what was known about the world at the time they were drawn. Korean map makers demonstrated a high level of skills and drew this reasonably accurate map of the world way back in 1402. This image gives an insight into how Koreans understood the ancient world, and importantly, how they saw themselves in relation to their neighbours.