Wanchojang

[2] Sedge has been a common material for household goods in Korea since the Silla period (57 BCE – 935 CE).

Despite the availability of the plant, which grows well in the waterlogged soil of rice paddies, sedge products were highly prized and were used as decoration in royal palaces and given as tribute to other nations.

A basic frame (no) is created first, comprising interwoven sedge strands; the samori, or vertical sections, are then woven into this.

[3] The process of creation is lengthy, taking up to two weeks for the construction of a hand-made sajuham ("three-tiered box").

[4] The current master of wanchojang is Yi Sang-jae from Ganghwado, an area that has long been a site of sedge cultivation and weaving.