Min Jin-jang

Min Jin-jang (閔鎭長, 1649 – 1700) was a royal in-law (cheoksin) of late Joseon Korea and a member of the Yeoheung lineage. His courtesy name was Chi-gu (稚久), and his posthumous name was Munhyo-gong (文孝公).

Life

He was the son of Min Jeong-jung, Left State Councillor, and nephew of Yeojang Buwon-gun Min Yu-jung. He was also the grandson of Governor Min Gwang-hun and a cousin of Queen Inhyeon. A disciple of Song Si-yeol, he passed the Samasi examination in 1669 (10th year of King Hyeonjong's reign). In 1686 (12th year of King Sukjong's reign), he passed the special civil service examination as top graduate and was promptly promoted to senior official rank (dangsanggwan). He served in several censorial posts and then held the positions of Chief Royal Secretary, Minister of Justice, Minister of War, Minister of Revenue, Governor of Hanseong, Commissioner of the Office of Royal Justice, Vice Minister of the Right State Secretariat, and Grand Censor-General. In 1700 he attained the post of Right State Councillor.

Posthumous Matters

The Tomb of Min Jin-jang is located in Bugu-ri, Jeomdong-myeon, Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province. The burial mound is a single-mound tomb (danbun) and is a joint grave with his wife, Lady Euiryeong Nam. The stone objects include one tombstone, one altar stone, one incense burner stone, one spirit-seat stone, one pair of civil official statues, and a stone for the tomb's body. About 30 meters below the tomb area stands one stele for his memorial inscription (sindobi). The guardian pillars (mangjuseok) are 198 cm high; on the left one a rat is shown descending and on the right one a rat is shown ascending, both carved in vivid relief. The stele below the tomb is distinctive in that two ichyong (螭龍, hornless dragons) are placed on the roof stone of the hipped-and-gabled (paljak) roof, their bodies entwined and facing in different directions. On the left and right sides of the pedestal, a seated is carved in relief, and on the back of the pedestal a lotus-and-arabesque pattern () is carved. Steles with carvings of this kind are rare, and their carving technique is excellent, giving them high artistic value. On May 17, 2006, the tomb was designated as Gyeonggi Province Monument No. 199 ().