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Tumak (thatched) House #4 - 투막집 (built late 19th century onward)

This mid-20th century house lies deep in the forested Nari basin, about two kilometers southwest of Nari. The house was rather hard to find, since there are no signs indicating the location from the main town (Nari). To reach it, one must walk about 2 kilometers southwest along the path that leads toward Mount Seongin (see the map on the index page for Nari). The house comes into view rather suddenly as the dense trees give way to a large meadow. There is no official name for this house distinguishing it from the others in the Nari basin, so I refer to it as "Tumak house 4" since it was the fourth and final house reached from Nari.

The house was constructed in the mid 1940s after a style that prevailed in the 1880s, when the first Korean settlers arrived on Ulleung-do from Gangwon province. The early settlers adapted their homes to the treacherous snow of Ulleung island by surrounding the entire house with a second wall of woven cornstalks, creating a sheltered corridor around the main rooms of the house. This second wall prevented snowdrifts from blocking entrances to the individual rooms, and also provided protection from the wind.

According to GPS readings taken by the author, the site is at 37 30.63778' N, 130 51.47926 E (WGS84 map datum). Address: 경북 울릉군 북면 나리리 307.

(Designated Cultural Property Material #183).

Plan

Basic plan of the house.
From on-site sketch by Timothy M. Ciccone, not to scale.