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A uncommon 1939 first version of Chae Man-sik’s iconic novel, “The Muddy Present” / Courtesy of Nationwide Hangeul Museum
To mark the centennial of Hangeul Day, the Nationwide Hangeul Museum is stepping up its drive to broaden its assortment of cultural heritage related to the Korean alphabet, with a give attention to public donations.
Designating 2026 because the 12 months of Hangeul Heritage Donations, the museum is launching a nationwide marketing campaign to encourage the sharing and preservation of supplies that embody the spirit of the Korean writing system.
Since its founding in 2014, the museum has amassed roughly 105,000 gadgets starting from early manuscripts and uncommon Twentieth-century publications to typewriters. Of those, almost 30,000 have entered the gathering by donations.
Final 12 months alone, 172 objects have been donated, amongst them a uncommon 1939 first version of Chae Man-sik’s “The Muddy Present.”
Initially serialized in a neighborhood every day newspaper between 1937 and 1938, the novel is extensively considered a landmark of recent Korean literature. Set within the port metropolis of Gunsan within the Nineteen Thirties, it affords an unflinching portrait of the hypocrisy, greed and ethical decay that had seeped into Korean society in the course of the Japanese colonial interval (1910-45).
The newly acquired version bears a seal studying “Man-sik” in Chinese language characters on the copyright web page and stays in well-preserved situation.
The oldest surviving Korean typewriter, developed by independence activist Tune Ki-joo in collaboration with Underwood Typewriter Firm in 1934 / Courtesy of Nationwide Hangeul Museum
Past these latest additions, the Nationwide Hangeul Museum holds a slew of culturally important objects acquired by donations over time.
Amongst them is the oldest surviving Korean typewriter, developed by independence activist Tune Ki-joo in collaboration with New York-based Underwood Typewriter Firm in 1934. Outfitted with 42 keys, the machine was designed to make typing in Korean extra accessible and environment friendly.
One other notable merchandise is a doc compiled by Park Doo-sung to advertise the broader use of “Hunmaengjeongeum,” the Korean Braille system he devised in 1926 for the visually impaired. Each gadgets have been gifted straight by descendants of their creators.
The museum’s donated holdings additionally embrace Korean dictionaries — amongst them editions printed by the Hangeul Society between 1947 and 1957 because the nation’s first complete Korean-language dictionaries. It additionally consists of literary works, handwritten manuscripts, textbooks, calligraphy and design items and supplies associated to the Korean language.
In 2019, the primary Hungarian-Korean dictionary, compiled by Aladar Soveny and launched in 1957 by the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, was gifted by Mozes Csoma, then-Hungarian ambassador to Korea, to mark the thirtieth anniversary of diplomatic ties between the 2 international locations.
“We hope that objects linking the previous, current and way forward for Hangeul will proceed to search out their technique to our museum,” stated Director Kang Jeong-won.
In the meantime, the Nationwide Hangeul Museum, presently closed for large-scale enlargement work, is scheduled to reopen in 2028.
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