A Giwatap Table Lamp as a Gift for a Friend Living Abroad

When choosing a gift for a friend living abroad, one naturally thinks about where the object will be placed. Something that captures the look of Korea while fitting naturally into a friend's daily life would be ideal. One buyer preparing a gift in Seoul chose the 미니좌등-사각기와탑 (Mini Jwadeung – Square Giwatap, a small electric table lamp in the form of a tiled-roof pagoda). They added a request to include a 110V connector. It was a choice that considered both the image of Korea they wanted to convey and the electrical supply where their friend lives.

The 미니좌등-사각기와탑 is an electric jwadeung (좌등, 座燈, a lamp that rests on a surface) whose form draws on the shapes of traditional giwatap (기와탑, tiled-roof pagoda). Its structure uses wood and hanji (한지, traditional Korean paper) and incorporates sagunja (사군자, the Four Gracious Plants) motifs, giving it the aesthetic sensibility of Korean tradition. With a width and depth of 15 cm each and a height of 27.5 cm, it is easy to gauge where it might sit on one side of a desk or table. When the light is off, the giwatap form can be appreciated on its own; when lit, it adds a soft glow to the atmosphere of a space, making it a fitting everyday object to give to a friend abroad.

View product — product page in Korean

If you are giving a lamp as a gift, it is worth thinking about where your friend usually spends their time. It might be a desk where they read, or a table where they pause for tea. Imagining a small lamp in the shape of a giwatap roof sitting on one side of that spot makes the purpose of the gift feel much more concrete. If the form of the giwatap appeals to you and a place to put it comes to mind, there is reason to choose this jwadeung. The process of thinking about a friend's taste while selecting the design is itself part of the time spent preparing the gift.

One detail that stands out in this purchase is the request for a 110V connector. Even after choosing the gift, the buyer's thoughts continued to how their friend would actually use it in their local setting. A lamp is an object whose usefulness is only complete in the moment it is switched on. When sending something abroad, it is a good idea to confirm with the seller both the operating voltage of the product and any connection parts needed locally. In this case there was a request to include a connector, and this should not be taken as a guarantee that the product can be used locally right away.

The gift was arranged so that the buyer in Seoul would receive it and then pass it on to their friend abroad. With a gift delivered in person before being sent on, one can inspect the shape and size of the giwatap with one's own eyes and make sure the requested connection parts are included. Adding a short note to the box would also be a good way to convey why this lamp was chosen. Something like "I thought it would suit the side of your desk" — a remark that calls the friend's life to mind — is more than enough.

While choosing something to send to a faraway friend, even a familiar relationship gives rise to thoughts one does not usually have. What shapes do they like? Where will they put it and use it? How will they connect it to the power supply there? This preparation — choosing the giwatap jwadeung and requesting a connector — is a case where those thoughts led to concrete choices. At the heart of the gift is the wish to place a small Korean-style lamp in the space where a friend lives.

This account is based on an actual purchase. Individuals and institutions have been anonymized and some scenes have been reconstructed.