Gimcheon High School Main Building and Old Science Building to Become Cultural Heritage

by Lee Jonggil

Published 09 Mar.2020 10:30(KST)

'Suwon Station Water Tower' and Japanese Colonial Era Magazine 'Bulgyo' Also Announced for Cultural Heritage Registration

Gimcheon High School Main Building

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jong-gil] The main building of Gimcheon High School, touched by the hand of Park Gil-ryong (1898?1943), a pioneer of modern Korean architecture, will become a cultural heritage site.

On the 9th, the Cultural Heritage Administration announced its plan to register four buildings as cultural heritage: the ‘Main Building of Gimcheon High School,’ the ‘Old Science Building of Gimcheon High School,’ the ‘Suwon Station Water Tower,’ and the magazine ‘Bulgyo’ (Buddhism). The ‘Main Building of Gimcheon High School’ was established in 1931 by Choi Songsul-dang (崔松雪堂) with the purpose of fostering national spirit. It is the main building of a representative private school in the Gimcheon area and holds high value as a work of Park Gil-ryong.

The ‘Old Science Building of Gimcheon High School,’ located side by side, also well represents the characteristics of modern school architecture from the 1930s. Both its interior and exterior spaces have well preserved their original form since construction, highlighting the need for preservation.

Suwon Station Water Tower

The ‘Suwon Station Water Tower’ collectively refers to the water towers of the 1930s national railway (Gukcheol, 國鐵) broad-gauge railway and the private railway (Sacheol, 私鐵) narrow-gauge railway. It is highly valuable as a railway heritage site because it allows simultaneous observation of the changes in water towers of both national and private railways.

‘Bulgyo’ is a representative comprehensive Buddhist magazine published from 1924. It ceased publication in 1933 but was reissued and published from 1937 to 1944. Edited mainly with contributions from key figures in the Buddhist community at the time, it offers insight into the Buddhist community’s awareness during the Japanese colonial period. Notable editorials include ‘Separate Politics and Religion (September 1931)’ and ‘Reform Plan for Korean Buddhism (October 1931).’ Han Yong-un was responsible for editing and publishing at that time. The Cultural Heritage Administration explained, “All issues from the first to the last are preserved, providing completeness. It plays an important role in modern Buddhist studies by allowing understanding of Japan’s Buddhist policies and the Buddhist community’s responses.”

Magazine 'Buddhism'

The Cultural Heritage Administration will collect opinions from various sectors for one month and finalize the designation of cultural heritage through the Cultural Heritage Committee’s review.