Andong is a city in the Gyeongsangbuk-do Province, South Korea. During the Joseon Dynasty (1392 -1897) it became the birth place of Confucianism in Korea. Nowadays Andong is very famous for its Mask Dance Festival. The festival is held between the 28th of September and the 7th of October. The slogan of the festival is "hearts bursting with excitement; feel exuberant".
The Andong area has a variety of socio-historical and religious heritages from different periods, from ancient times to the present. Andong holds the largest number of cultural properties in Korea. Andong has been preserving the largest cultural properties in Korea and it reveals a very vivid picture of the aesthetics and traditions of the Orient. We can find not only tangible cultural and historical heritages like ancient villages, but also many intangible cultural properties of the Andong tradition such as Cha-Jeon-Nori (demonstration of Battle game, involving hundreds of men working together), Not-Dari-Balgi (a female play), Hajeon Ssaeum and Jeojeon Nonmegi(farmers' song), Naebang Gasa(women's calligraphy), Hangsangsori(a funeral dirge) etc.
The abundant cultural heritage of Andong is attributed to the worth-oriented philosophy of the Andong people who have coped with numerous social changes and positively adapted to new cultural traditions. Hence, various elements of Oriental culture have flowed into Andong and been re-synthesized into the distinctive Andong way of life and culture.
These socio-cultural, historical and religious heritages are the basis of the Maskdance Festival. We can learn quiet composure and mindfulness through understanding the significance of traditions through the excitement of the Mask dance. Therefore, the mask dance is composed of the experience of Andong culture and joy of the festival like yin and yang marks in Korean flag.