PYEONGCHANG, Gangwon Province -- It seems like the PyeongChang Winter Games has a new, unofficial mascot: a human-faced bird named Inmyeonjo.

The Inmyeonjo stages a performance at the PyeongChang Olympics opening ceremony at PyeongChang, Gangwon Province, Friday. (Lee Sang-sub/The Korea Herald)
The Inmyeonjo stages a performance at the PyeongChang Olympics opening ceremony at PyeongChang, Gangwon Province, Friday. (Lee Sang-sub/The Korea Herald)

The bird, which appears in tomb paintings from Korea’s ancient kingdom of Goguryeo, was featured during the opening ceremony of the Games on Friday, celebrating the themes of harmony and peace.

Soon after it was broadcast live, the bird quickly became a talking point among South Koreans -- and even among foreign viewers -- as many found the bird scary and even grotesque.

— 텐더 (@minampeace46) 2018년 2월 9일 “I thought I was watching a horror movie,” said one Twitter user. “I would not have been able to forget that (horrific) face of Inmyeonjo if Kim Yuna had not appeared at the end of the ceremony,” said another.

But the bird soon started to receive rather favorable reviews, with some saying that more they looked at it, the better-looking it seemed.

Fan art featuring the Inmyeonjo has already plastered social media.

The hashtag “Drawing world’s best Inmyeonjo” was the top trending Korean keyword on Twitter.

— 긴죠 (@Gjnoel_) 2018년 2월 9일

I made Confucianism dragon from Pyeonchang olympic opening into figure#평창올림픽 #인면조 #인면조_트친소 #평창인면조 #PyongChang2018 #Confucius pic.twitter.com/aE7I6kfQKr

— 발광목성인 (@jupiter1390) 2018년 2월 10일 One Twitter user posted a drawing featuring the bird along with the official mascots of the Games – Soohorang (white tiger) and Bandabi (Asiatic black bear) – all together, expressing appreciation for them all.

Another user created an account named Inmyeonjo, attracting 1,026 followers as of Saturday afternoon. “I will protect those who have followed me, Thank you,” the person tweeted. It has been retweeted more than 830 times.

수호랑 & 반다비 vs 인면조

2월9일 개봉 pic.twitter.com/B7a1ZXhd8C

— 비정규직 노예☠️ (@LLL____b) 2018년 2월 9일 Inmyeonjo was also featured in a movie poster created by another Twitter user. In it, the official mascots of the games, Soohorang and Bandabi, are fearfully, and somewhat courageously, looking at the gigantic and intimidating Inmyeonjo. The movie’s title is “The Grand PyeongChang Adventure.”

Meanwhile, a man who claims to have designed the bird for the Olympics appeared on Twitter, appreciating the unexpected attention it has been receiving since Friday.

— Il hwan Bae (@IlhwanBae1) 2018년 2월 10일 “I’m the person who designed the Inmyeonjo. Thanks for the love and attention to my baby,” he said, posting a picture of himself rehearsing with the creature in a studio.

In spite of its eerie appearance, Inmyeonjo was traditionally believed to live in paradise by Buddhists in the Goguryeo Kingdom. They believed only those with a pure heart would be able to hear the bird sing – Inmyeonjo was also believed to have the most beautiful voice in heaven.

By Park Ju-young, Claire Lee (jupark@herladcorp.com) ()