Homes

Joseon homes were known as hanok and were very distinctive in that they were essentially the same relative size, but made from different materials depending on the social class of the person who owns the house. In either case, homes followed the principles of fung  sui and were designed to be cozy and comfortable, and though they could be a bit crowded, (often 6 or 7 people living in a small 3 room house) they provided a relatively high standard of living and general efficiency across Joseon society.

 There was a great variety in the material hanok were made of, but often these houses were constructed of a pine frame, (put together through wood joinery) with loess, (a well insulating type of clay) walls, and had either a straw or tile roof (though wooden shingles were also used where locally available). They were usually L or U shaped in the southern part of the country and more square or somewhat circular in the northern part of the country though this was not always the case, and often faced towards a large central courtyard, (often containing many gardens) around which many members of an extended family lived; sharing the use of a common well. (There was no running water)

Examples of various hanok styles (Hyewon, 2011)

A Joseon hanok village (Chrystal G, 2012)

Undol (in-floor heating) is probably one of the most distinctive features of Joseon homes. It consisted of a smoke-based underfloor heating system that was often attached to the wood burning-oven, (or furnace made specifically for undol) and ran under 1 or more rooms before allowing smoke to escape through a freestanding chimney.

Undol heading system cross section (Yujinishuge, 2010)

Furniture was suited to the heated floors and was made to be low to the floor, consisting items such as: dividing screens, low tables, mats, pillows, shelves, and yo. (Foldable mats that were used as bedding during the Joseon dynasty which could be set up at night in a room with undol heating, usually a multipurpose living room (there were no rooms specified as bedrooms) other useful items included: abacuses, millstones, and water buckets among other things

Examples of Joseon furniture. (Ah-young, 2011)