Chollipo Arboretum Records, National Heritage Registration Deferred Due to Quantity Discrepancy

Historical Records of Korea’s First Private Arboretum
Registration Deferred Pending Reinvestigation

Entrance to Min Byunggal Plant Library Preservation Stacks

The process of registering records documenting the history of Korea's first private arboretum as national heritage has been put on hold. This is due to the fact that the number of records has not been properly verified.

According to the National Heritage Administration on November 18, the Modern and Contemporary Cultural Heritage Subcommittee under the Cultural Heritage Committee recently decided to defer the registration of "Records Related to the Establishment of Chollipo Arboretum in Taean" as national registered cultural heritage. Although a registration notice was issued in March and opinions from various sectors were reviewed, the final registration was not achieved. The committee stated, "We plan to conduct a reinvestigation of the records, reflecting the request to change the registration target."

Located on the northwest coast of the Taean Peninsula in South Chungcheong Province, Chollipo Arboretum is Korea’s first private arboretum, established in 1970 by the late Min Byunggal, a former U.S. military officer who became a naturalized Korean citizen. The National Heritage Administration announced its intention to register as national heritage documents such as land purchase certificates, work logs, plant collection, propagation and management journals, and overseas correspondence written by founder Min Byunggal. The records cover materials created between 1946 and 1989.

The National Heritage Administration only stated that the number of records was "two types, one set each," but during the review process, it was pointed out that the quantity had not been properly verified. Taean County explained, "When we first applied, there were not many records, but during the subsequent batch application process, it was found that the numbers did not match." The National Heritage Administration commented, "There was an error in verifying the number of records," and added, "We plan to review the matter again compared to the initial application."

May 1975 Work Log

As a result of this decision, it will be difficult for the records related to Chollipo Arboretum to be listed as national registered cultural heritage within this year. According to the current Enforcement Decree of the Act on the Preservation and Utilization of Modern and Contemporary Cultural Heritage, the head of the National Heritage Administration must decide whether to register the heritage within six months of the end of the public notice period, after deliberation by the Cultural Heritage Committee. The registration notice period for the Chollipo Arboretum records ended on April 17. To be listed as national registered cultural heritage, the records must go through the public notice and review procedures again.

Recently, the investigation and verification of registered cultural heritage status have been strengthened. In 2005, the "Birthplace of Nam Insoo in Hachon-dong, Jinju" was removed from the register due to unreliable supporting materials, and the "Silver-Plated Ihwa Cultural Bottle" became controversial after it was revealed to be a Japanese product, not royal heritage. In June of this year, "Mika-Type Steam Locomotive No. 129" also lost its status as national registered cultural heritage.