When Life Gives You Tangerines in front of Punggu

 
Thank You For Your Devotion at the Hearth

A prop in a recently ended Netflix series When Life Gives You Tangerines caught my eye.
 
The punggu, just like the one I saw as a child in front of my grandmother’s kitchen hearth.
 
Punggu is an everyday tool used to help start a fire in a kitchen hearth. It consists of a round iron body fitted with a four-blade propeller, connected to a circular wheel.
 
When the handle is turned, the blades and wheel rotate together, generating wind that helps kindling catch fire more easily. It was particularly useful when dealing with hard-to-burn fuel, making it easier to ignite the fire and increase its intensity.  

Though no longer a part of daily life, punggu remains precious, bearing the memories and love of those who devoted their lives to their families, like the drama’s protagonist. 
 
To the parents who patiently forged their lives in front of the hearth, turning punggu, thank you for all your hard work.
Written by Kim Yunhee, Curator of National Folk Museum of Korea
Artifact Information: Punggu (Minsok17103)
 
국립민속박물관 National Folk Museum of Korea

아궁이 앞에서 폭싹 속았수다

최근 종영한 드라마 ‘폭싹 속았수다’ 속 한 장면에서 눈길을 끈 소품이 있었습니다. 
 
어린 시절 할머니 댁 아궁이 앞에서 보았던 바로 그 ‘풍구’입니다. 
 
풍구는 아궁이에 불을 지필 때 사용하던 생활 도구로 네 개의 송풍 날개가 있는 철제 원형 몸통과 둥근 바퀴가 연결된 구조입니다. 
 
손잡이를 돌리면 날개와 바퀴가 회전하면서 바람을 만들어내어 불쏘시개에 불이 잘 붙도록 도와주었죠. 특히 잘 타지 않는 연료를 사용할 때 불을 쉽게 붙이고 화력을 높이기 위해 꼭 필요했습니다.

이제는 거의 사라져 일상에서 보기 힘든 풍구지만 드라마 속 주인공처럼 가족을 위해 희생하며 살아온 누군가의 추억과 사랑이 담겨 있기에 더욱 소중합니다. 
 
그 시절 아궁이 앞에서 풍구를 돌리며 묵묵히 삶을 일구던 부모님... 폭싹 속았수다.

글: 김윤희 국립민속박물관 학예연구사
소장품 정보: 풍구(민속17103)