Korean and Japanese postcards of the past - the palanquin

A Korean official in a palanquin circa 1890s.

By Robert Neff

One of the chief modes of luxury transport in 19th century Korea was "the sedan chair" or palanquin.

Early American missionaries living in Seoul quickly realized they were not only a means of transport, but also a status symbol and purchased the best they could afford. Apparently the American legation did not.

According to one resident in 1889:

"Concerning the sedan chairs, however, the [Koreans] have a curious saying when they see a foreigner's chair. If it be a brand new one it is a missionary who is coming; if only respectable, it belongs to one of the foreign Legations. If old and shabby, it must be that of the American Minister."

A Korean woman and her chair circa 1900.

While many male missionaries preferred to travel the Korean countryside on horseback, some women missionaries chose to use the palanquin ― one such woman was Mattie Tate, who traveled from Seoul to Jeonju in 1894. In an account of her journey, her palanquin was described as:

"A little four-posted canopy about three feet square by four feet high, carried on two poles. The passenger sits on the floor of the box-like chair, and there are curtains to screen him from view and keep out the fresh air. Each of the four carriers has a pair of suspenders over his shoulders, and through loops on either side of his body the ends of the poles pass. If you can sit cross-legged … and dispense with fresh air, and don't object to your coolies putting you down in the middle of the road every three miles, while they go to get a drink and take a smoke, it is not a disagreeable way to travel, and you can make 35 miles in a day."

It may not have been bad at first, but by the time she arrived at her destination she needed a couple of days' recovery before she was able to comfortably walk.

With the introduction of the rickshaw in the mid-1880s, the days of the palanquin were numbered and by the early 20th century they had all but disappeared from the streets of Korea.