UNESCO House becomes Cultural Heritage of early modern times of S.Korea

▲ This photo, shows the UNESCO House. (Yonhap)

 

▲ This photo, shows the UNESCO House. (Yonhap)

▲ This photo, provided by the Cultural Heritage Administration, shows the "Jahye Clinic's Journal," which may be registered as the Cultural Heritage of early modern times of South Korea. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

 

▲ This photo, provided by the Cultural Heritage Administration, shows "Rural Sanitation Research Institute Journal," which might be registered as the Cultural Heritage of early modern times of South Korea. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

 

▲ This photo, provided by the Cultural Heritage Administration, shows the Haegwan (Customs) report of to blocking the spread of cholera. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)

 

 

SEOUL, July 14 (Yonhap) --The UNESCO House has become registered as the Cultural Heritage of early modern times of South Korea. 

The Cultural Heritage Administration announced on Thursday that it had confirmed the registration of two cultural assets, including the UNESCO House and the "Haegwan (Customs) Report Documents (Incheon, Busan, and Wonsan)."

The UNESCO House, a place for international activities by holding various conferences and academic debates, is also evaluated to have played a role in the educational, scientific, and cultural activities through the modern era.

Constructed in 1967, it was made with the "curtain wall method," which was rare at that time. As an early building with modern architectural techniques applied, it maintains its original form with the exterior walls being erected with glass on steel columns.

The Cultural Heritage Administration will be holding a ceremony to deliver the nationally registered Cultural Heritage of early modern times of South Korea certificate at the Korean National Commission for UNESCO on July 15 at 11 a.m.

The customs report document is a document reported to the central customs office by Incheon Haegwan (Customs), Busan Haegwan (Customs), and Wonsan Haegwan (Customs), which were in charge of customs duties at the open port in the 1880s and 1890s. Haegwan is the Chinese expression of Saegwan (Customs).

Documents documenting customs duties, port construction, concession surveys, customs administration-related business status, and drawings of customs offices remain. The preventive quarantine guidelines issued in 1886 to block the spread of cholera is also shown.

The medical records written by the late Dr. Lee Young-chun (1903-1980), who is often called the "Schweitzer of Korea" and devoted himself to rural health and hygiene, is under investigation to be registered as Cultural Heritage of early modern times of South Korea. 

The Cultural Heritage Administration announced on the same day that the three journals written by Dr. Lee Young-chun including "Jahye Clinic's Journal," "Gaejeongjungang Hospital's Journal," and "Rural Sanitation Research Institute Journal," will be registered as Cultural Heritage of early modern times of South Korea as well.

Born in South Pyongan Province, Dr. Lee was the first Korean to obtain a doctoral degree in medicine. After liberation, he established Gaejeongjungang Hospital, North Jeolla Province, and devoted his life to treating farmers and educating residents.

The journal of Jahye Clinic was written by Dr. Lee in 1935 after he was appointed as the director of Jahye Clinic, a medical center at Kumamoto Farm in Gunsan, run by the Japanese, while treating more than 20,000 farm tenants.

The Gaejeongjungang Hospital's Journal is a medical record by the Gaejeongjungang Hospital, which were made for patients or surgical patients who's condition was difficult to treat at the clinic. These records allowed them to check the farm tenants' health and medical conditions.

The journal, written by Dr. Lee after establishing the Rural Hygiene Research Center in 1948, is also highly recognized as a public health and medical history, as it shows various rural sanitation projects carried out to protect the health of farmers from parasites, tuberculosis, and infectious diseases.

Records that have been announced for registration under the name of "Records of Lee Young-chun's Rural Sanitation Medical Care" will be determined whether or not to register it as Cultural Heritage of early modern times of South Korea after collecting various opinions within the 30-days period, and the decision of the Cultural Heritage Committee.

 

(This article is translated from Korean to English by Haemin Kim.)

 

 

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