"It's Really a War" Where Exactly Is the National Treasure-Level 'Hunminjeongeum Sangjubon'?

First Search of Owner's Home and Office
Cultural Heritage Administration: "Will Continue Persuasion"
Mr. Bae Demands 100 Billion Won Compensation

Hunminjeongeum Kansong Edition (left) and Sangju Edition [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] "It is a war between the person hiding it and the person searching for it."

According to the cultural sector on the 22nd, the Cultural Heritage Administration's Cultural Heritage Offenders Crackdown Team searched three locations, including the home and office of rare book collector and dealer Bae Ik-gi (59) in Sangju, Gyeongbuk, on May 13 to recover the Hunminjeongeum Sangjubon. The forced execution was carried out after obtaining a successor execution document from the court. However, despite searching for about five hours, the crackdown team failed to find the Sangjubon.

Given the situation, some have expressed opinions that Bae should not be arrested and judicial procedures such as searching for the whereabouts of the Sangjubon should not be pursued. In response, a Cultural Heritage Administration official explained, "An investigation can only be conducted if there is a specific charge, and if no charges are found, it also means giving Bae a clean slate."

The Hunminjeongeum Sangjubon, which had been hidden since 2008, was partially damaged by fire when a blaze broke out at the Bae family’s house in March 2015.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

He added, "We are really considering many aspects over and over again," and said, "If we excessively provoke (Bae), there is concern that, depending on his emotional changes, he might damage the precious cultural heritage."

Regarding communication with Bae over the recovery of the Sangjubon, he emphasized, "(The Cultural Heritage Administration) has made every possible effort, including communicating with Bae more than 50 times. We are continuously persuading him."

Since the Supreme Court ruled in 2019 that the ownership of the Hunminjeongeum Sangjubon belongs to the state, the Cultural Heritage Administration has expressed a strong will to recover it. It is also known that if the storage location is identified, they are considering forced execution or search and seizure according to law and principles.

The Hunminjeongeum Sangjubon became known after Bae revealed part of it in 2008, claiming he had found a Hunminjeongeum Haerye edition different from the 'Gansongbon,' but its whereabouts remain unknown to this day. Bae's position is that he will hand it over if the government compensates him with 100 billion won.

In a past interview with a media outlet, Bae said, "I think it is a strange fate that King Sejong passed the Sangjubon to me, but considering my status, I cannot say that this fate will last until the end," and added, "Since I am unmarried, there are limits for me, and I cannot pass it down forever to future generations."

The Sangjubon is the same edition as the Haerye edition (Gansong Art Museum edition), which is National Treasure No. 70. It is evaluated to have greater academic value than the Gansongbon because it contains researchers' annotations on notations and sounds that are not present in the Gansongbon.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.