Kind · By use
Wedding-goose wrapper
A gireogibo wraps the carved wooden goose a groom presents at a traditional wedding as a pledge of fidelity.
- Meaning
- 'goose wrapper' (기러기 wild goose + 보)
- Made of
- Silk, embroidery
- Era
- Joseon (1392–1910) to today
Wraps the carved wooden wild goose (나무 기러기), a symbol of marital fidelity, carried by the groom. Often embroidered with rainbow-colored threads representing rice stalks.
History & tradition
Joseon to today
At the 전안례, the first part of a traditional wedding, the groom presented a carved wooden goose to the bride's family as a pledge of lifelong fidelity, since geese were believed to take only one mate. A man called the 기럭아비 carried it ahead of the groom, wrapped in a cloth, and it was set on a table spread with red cloth. The wrapper was often embroidered, with rainbow threads said to stand for rice stalks.
Wooden geese, wrapped in bojagi, are still part of traditional-style and 폐백 ceremonies today.