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Explorations in the History of Machines and MechanismsJang Yeong-sil: Inventor of the Striking Clepsydra during the Reign of King Sejong in Joseon

Explorations in the History of Machines and Mechanisms: Jang Yeong-sil: Inventor of the Striking... [Jang Yeong-sil was the Chief Royal Engineer in charge of the engineering and construction project for re-equipping the Royal Observatory during the reign of King Sejong (世宗 r. 1432-1438). Jang devoted himself to making five kinds of astronomical instruments and ten timekeepers. In this paper the life and contributions of Jang are introduced along with his major invention: the striking clepsydra. This paper also discusses how the clepsydras were handed down and utilized by Jang’s successors in the making of astronomical clocks in Joseon. Not only did Jang assimilate the techniques of his Korean, Chinese and Islamic predecessors, but he also was a creative and innovative engineer. Jang is in some ways the most articulate among those in a long tradition of “automation” in Asian science and technology, where automation is a matter of submission to the laws of nature rather than the means of controlling nature, as seen in our time. This paper positions Jang’s work as a catalyst for new directions in automation and robotic arts. He was one of those mechanical geniuses who contributed to the advancement of pre-modern science and technology] http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png

Explorations in the History of Machines and MechanismsJang Yeong-sil: Inventor of the Striking Clepsydra during the Reign of King Sejong in Joseon

Part of the History of Mechanism and Machine Science Book Series (volume 15)
Editors: Koetsier, Teun; Ceccarelli, Marco
Moon-hyon, Nam
Explorations in the History of Machines and Mechanisms — Jan 1, 2012
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References (3)

Publisher
Springer Netherlands
Copyright
© Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2012
ISBN
978-94-007-4131-7
Pages
83 –105
DOI
10.1007/978-94-007-4132-4_6
Publisher site
See Chapter on Publisher Site

Abstract

[Jang Yeong-sil was the Chief Royal Engineer in charge of the engineering and construction project for re-equipping the Royal Observatory during the reign of King Sejong (世宗 r. 1432-1438). Jang devoted himself to making five kinds of astronomical instruments and ten timekeepers. In this paper the life and contributions of Jang are introduced along with his major invention: the striking clepsydra. This paper also discusses how the clepsydras were handed down and utilized by Jang’s successors in the making of astronomical clocks in Joseon. Not only did Jang assimilate the techniques of his Korean, Chinese and Islamic predecessors, but he also was a creative and innovative engineer. Jang is in some ways the most articulate among those in a long tradition of “automation” in Asian science and technology, where automation is a matter of submission to the laws of nature rather than the means of controlling nature, as seen in our time. This paper positions Jang’s work as a catalyst for new directions in automation and robotic arts. He was one of those mechanical geniuses who contributed to the advancement of pre-modern science and technology]

Published: Jan 1, 2012

Keywords: Heavenly Motion; Royal Observatory; Bell Tower; Royal Court; White Tiger

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