Phoenix Throne

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title: "Phoenix Throne" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["korean-monarchy", "thrones", "national-symbols-of-korea"] description: "Throne of the Korean monarch" topic_path: "geography/korea" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phoenix_Throne" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Throne of the Korean monarch ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox Korean name/auto"]

Field	Value
image	Seoul Throne in Geunjeongjeon 03.jpg
caption	The central feature of Geunjeongjeon in Gyeongbokgung is the elevated Phoenix throne.
hangul	어좌; 옥좌; 보좌
hanja	御座; 玉座; 寶座
::

|image=Seoul Throne in Geunjeongjeon 03.jpg |caption=The central feature of Geunjeongjeon in Gyeongbokgung is the elevated Phoenix throne. |hangul=어좌; 옥좌; 보좌 |hanja=御座; 玉座; 寶座

The Phoenix Throne () is the term used to identify the throne of the hereditary monarchs of Korea. In an abstract sense, the Phoenix Throne also refers rhetorically to the head of state of the Joseon dynasty (1392–1897) and the Empire of Korea (1897–1910).

The phoenix motif symbolizes the king's supreme authority. The phoenix has a long association with Korean royalty — for example, in Goguryeo tomb murals like that of the Middle Gangseo Tumulus where the painted image of a phoenix is featured.

History

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ef/Gojong-King.of.the.Korean.Empire-1903.jpg" caption="Emperor Gojong]] enthroned. Lithograph by Joseph de la Nezière, 1903."] ::

Enthronement ceremonies and the throne itself has evolved across the span of Korean history. For example, from 1399 to 1549, seven of twelve kings were enthroned in the royal throne hall (Geunjeongjeon) at the palace Gyeongbokgung. In other words, Jeongjong, Sejong, Danjong, Sejo, Seongjong, Jungjong, and Myeongjong ascended the Phoenix Throne in the same royal location.

Rhetorical usage

This flexible English term is also a rhetorical trope. Depending on context, the Phoenix Throne can be construed as a metonymy, which is a rhetorical device for an allusion relying on proximity or correspondence, as for example referring to actions of the monarch or as "actions of the Phoenix Throne."

The Phoenix Throne is also understood as a synecdoche, which is related to metonymy and metaphor in suggesting a play on words by identifying a closely related conceptualization, e.g.,

• referring to the whole with the name of a part, such as "Phoenix Throne" for the serial symbols and ceremonies of enthronement :* " ... Yi Bang-won ... ascended the Phoenix Throne as King Taejong in 1400." :* "In 1776, Prince Sado's second son ascended the Phoenix Throne as King Jeongjo "

• referring to the general with the specific, such as "Phoenix Throne" for kingship—as in: :* "... T'aejo mounted the phoenix throne in Kaesŏng as the first ruler of Chosŏn."

Notes

References

• Henthorn, William E. (1971). A History of Korea. New York: Free Press. OCLC 186869329
• Korean Ministry of Culture and Information . (1978). *A Handbook of Korea.'' Seoul: Korean Overseas Information Service, OCLC 6719067

References

1. Korean Ministry of Culture and Information. (1978). ''A Handbook of Korea,'' p. 189.
2. (March 2018)
3. Korea History Project, {{usurped
4. Henthorn, William E. (1971). ''A History of Korea,'' p. 136.

::callout[type=info title="Wikipedia Source"] This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page. ::