Built in 1656, the Shrine is located on the slopes of Mount Ryonggak, about ten kilometers from Pyongyang.[2][3] The Academy was damaged by fire in the early 1710s, and was rebuilt in 1713.[4]
The Academy served as a private educational institution during the Ri Dynasty. The complex includes two quarters - an auditorium and a shrine. The buildings were constructed in a row on sloping land. The auditorium quarter include an east classroom and a west classroom. Behind the shrine is a pavilion with a calligraphic board hung under the eaves of the roof.[5]
The complex is also known as the Ryonggok Auditorium. The main building is known as the Taesong Hall; it is the largest building on the complex. The Taesong Hall's roof has a windbreak board on each side, “a unique form, rare to be seen in other old architectures”. The Auditorium includes an outer door, a dormitory and an inner door. The outer door has a two storied gable roof. The first floor of the complex was used as an auditorium and the second floor was used as a lecture room. There are the eastern and western study rooms on the both sides of the inner court.[6] A sign board bearing the school’s name hangs from the eaves of the shrine and a monument in the north western house explains that the school was built in 1713.[7]