For modern-day Seoulites living, it is sometimes hard to imagine the megapolis as Hanyang, the capital of Joseon for several centuries. To this day, historical artifacts are discovered across the city, revealing the lives of royalty and commoners of the old kingdom. The Seoul Metropolitan Government has recently opened to the public the historic site of Hanyangdoseong, or Hanyang’s town castle wall, on the hillside of Namsan. The site includes a 189-meter stone wall on some 43,000 squar

Korea is set to call on the retrieval of Jikji, the world’s oldest metal-printed book currently stored in France, with a new official website and other promotional activities. Jikji refers to a Korean Buddhism document printed at the temple Heungdeoksa in 1377 during the Goryeo Kingdom (918-1392). It was printed 78 years prior to Gutenberg’s 42-line Bible. Jikji was listed in the UNESCO Memory of the World Register in 2001. Brought to France at the end of the 19th century, one sole

Florian Riem to leave Tongyeong after seven years at helm of efforts to grow Tongyeong into international music city

As the cold winter approaches, a community organization in Incheon has embarked on a project to share some warmth with the trees.  In the city’s Mansu district, trees lining the streets are clad in colorful patterned blankets knitted by members of the Dream Village Community.  Some feature hearts and flowers, while others draw on winter themes and depict characters such as Olaf, the snowman from “Frozen.” The Dream Village Community reportedly began knitting not on

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Crafts & Design Foundation announced Friday that two local middle schools -- Jakcheon Middle School and Daechang Middle School -- had adopted hanbok-inspired school uniforms on Nov. 16. This is the first uptake of hanbok-inspired school uniforms, which were created as part of a project, led jointly by the Culture Ministry and the Ministry of Education, which began in February last year.   “Along with 53 uniform designs th

Angbuilgu, a hemispherical metal sundial from the Joseon era (1392-1910), has been brought back to Korea from the US and is now on display at the National Palace Museum of Korea. The exhibition of the sundial will run until Dec. 20. The Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation under the Cultural Heritage Administration said it first found out about the sundial in January. “Our staff in the US conducted a close research and investigation of the item, which came up for auction”

The city government of Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, plans to sue the driver of the vehicle that was photographed parked atop a Silla Kingdom tomb, a city official said Wednesday. The official added while there was no visible damage to the tomb, a thorough examination will be conducted to determine any harm done to it. Even if no damages are discovered, the city will sue for illegal parking, the official told The Korea Herald. “It appears the driver drove through the fence surro

South Korean food makers are reaching out for unique collaborations by adding a little twist to their original products. Convenience store GS25 has teamed up with Miwon Group and launched Miwon Matsogeum Popcorn, touching on the “newtro” trend of blending established, sometimes unfashionable brands with new products they are not usually associated with. Matsogeum is a kind of seasoning and in Korea, Miwon is a household name associated with it. And while the Buldak brand, more

As South Korea decided Tuesday to tighten the social distancing rules to Level 1.5 in the Greater Seoul area from the current Level 1, the cultural sectors will have to make adjustments to comply with restrictions for state-run and public facilities, performance halls, religious facilities and movie theaters. The stricter social distancing rules will go into effect Thursday in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province, and Monday in Incheon. The announcement came after the region began to see a coronavir

Yeondeunghoe, a lantern lighting festival in South Korea, reached the final stage before being inscribed on the UNESCO list of intangible cultural assets at 2 a.m., Tuesday, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration. In March 2018, the CHA applied for the listing of Yeondeunghoe to the UNESCO Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. In its application, the agency explained that the lantern lighting festival‘s value lays in being a cultural festival for

A cauldron-shaped sundial made during the 1392-1910 Joseon Dynasty has returned home from the United States, South Korea's state heritage foundation said Tuesday. The Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation said it bought the sundial, one of the Angbuilgu public clocks, at a US auction in June and brought it back to South Korea two months later. Anbuilgu was first invented during the reign of King Sejong in the 15th century in order to tell the 24 solar seasonal terms as well as the hours

South Korea's lantern lighting festival, an event held to celebrate Buddha's birthday, is expected to be inscribed as an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO, the government said Tuesday. The festival of lights, also called the Lotus Lantern Festival or "Yeon Deung Hoe" in Korean, was among the 25 successful applicants that were recommended by an intergovernmental assessment panel to be listed, according to the Cultural Heritage Administration. The annual event, held in line with B

The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism expects the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership, which South Korean President Moon Jae-in signed Sunday with his counterparts from 14 partner countries, to set the stage for the expansion of Hallyu. “We expect this deal to improve the environment for the expansion of Hallyu content in member countries and also provide legal grounds for (cultural content) exporters,” Culture Minister Park Yang-woo said in a statement. Park also ad

  Located near Jeongbalsan, in the middle of Ilsan, Gyeonggi Province, a thatch house built of chestnut wood has been preserved to give a glimpse into a traditional farm house of the late Joseon Period.  The house is thought to have been built in the 19th-century in the village in Ilsan area where members of the Danyang Yi clan settled. With an abundance of chestnut trees in the village, the house used chestnut wood as its main building material, and came to be known as Bamgasi Cho

Camellia flowers stand out splendidly in Hueree Natural Park in Seogwipo on Jeju Island.  The bright and stunning colors of camellia captivate the visitors as they walk around the park.  Camellia flowers are also referred to as the “friends of winter” in the winter days.  (Photos: Yonhap) By Lee Jae-Eun (leeje16@heraldcorp.com)