Ancient salt-making culture revived at Siheung Salt Festival on Sept. 20

Siheung will revive the old culture of its salt farms on Sept. 20, when it stages the ninth Siheung Salt Festival at the salt-making experience area of Gaetgol Ecological Park.

The festival recreates the salt ritual once held at the Sorae Saltworks, where people prayed for abundance in salt production and the well-being of their community. The saltworks operated from the Japanese colonial period until 1996.

The event began in 2018 and takes place every year as part of Siheung’s “Open-Air Museum” project, which preserves and makes use of the city’s history and everyday cultural heritage. This year’s program will run alongside the Siheung Gaetgol Festival, held from Sept. 18 to 20.

Visitors will be able to explore not only Gaetgol’s ecological environment but also the history and culture of the former Sorae Saltworks. The program will open with a performance by the Siheung Municipal Traditional Arts Troupe, followed by the salt ritual and a recreation of traditional salt harvesting. The city says the event will offer a chance to experience its distinctive salt-making culture and carry disappearing traditions into the present.