This house is where Sangheo (pen name) Lee Tae-Jun, a novelist who defected to North Korea, lived and wrote his works from 1933, when he built the house, to 1946. As a founding member of the Guinhoe (the Circle of Nine), a literary club formed in 1933 by nine writers who pursued belles-lettres rather than...   Read more

Jeoldusan Mountain is located near the Hangang River in Hapjeong-dong, where the Gangbyeonbukno meets Subway Line 2. Also referred to as Jamdubong (literally meaning “silkworm head” in English), as it is said to look like a silkworm raising its head high, Jeoldusan used be a famous place in the east of Yanghwajin, a port on...   Read more

Some 80 years ago on the Anam-dong Campus of the present-day Korea University, a western-style school building, designed and financed by Koreans, was established. In 1932, Kim Seong-Su, also known by his childhood name “Inchon,” took over Bosung College, visited universities around the world, and dreamed of establishing a college in Korea. He brought his...   Read more

In 2012, Seoul City restored part of the Seoul Fortress Wall and the Namsan Mountain ridge as part of the Namsan Renaissance Project. Korea’s first Children’s Center stands at the end of the mountain ridge that connects the site of a playground to Baekbeom Square, still preserving its old glory. In 1970, when it was...   Read more

With Japan’s cultural control in the 1920s, restrictions on the press were eased and modern libraries emerged in Korea. The Gyeongseong Prefecture Library (the former Namsan Public Library), Korea’s first public library, was established amid such social circumstances. A result of Japanese colonial reform policy, the Namsan Public Library was a haven for Korean people...   Read more

Nestled at the foot of Namsan Mountain on Jangchungdan-ro, Jung-gu, the National Theater of Korea, built in the 1970s, is the first cultural space built solely with Korean technology, at a time when Korea’s economic development was at its peak. Asia’s first national theater opened on April 29, 1950; however, the Korean War broke out...   Read more

Baehwa Girls’ High School is nestled at the slanted foot of Inwangsan Mountain in Pilun-dong, Jongno-gu, Seoul. It was the site of the house of Lee Hang-Bok, a civil official who served in the early Joseon period (1392-1910), and was commonly referred to as Pilundae and frequented by academics. To this day, Baehwa Girls’ High...   Read more

The Seoul Olympic Stadium, commonly referred to as Jamsil Olympic Stadium, is located by the Hangang River in Jamsil, Songpa-gu, some 13km from central Seoul in the southeastern part of the city, where many high-rise apartment buildings are concentrated. In 1971, President Park Chung-Hee announced the Comprehensive Jamsil Development Plan, which included the creation of...   Read more

Designated as Folk Cultural Asset No. 22 by Seoul City in 1977, Baek In-Je House, in Gahoe-dong, is one of the few remaining large-scale traditional Korean houses in Seoul. It is a modernized traditional Korean house built by Han Sang-Ryong. Han was a nephew of Lee Wan-Yong and the executive director of Korea’s first bank,...   Read more

In 1884, King Gojong decided to launch a modern postal service system. To achieve this, Ujeong Chongguk (Historical Site No. 213) was established, with the agreement of the Vice Minister of War, Hong Yeong-Sik, who had long desired such a postal system. Ujeong Chongguk is the world’s oldest post office and the first post office...   Read more

In early spring of 1975, the Dongsung-dong Campus of Seoul National University held its last graduation ceremony. Standing at the corner of Daehang-ro, a street packed with youthful energy and many parks, the building was turned into the Artist’s House in 2010. It is a modern architectural structure that has been designated as a historical...   Read more

Changgyeonggung Palace is one of the four palaces in Seoul, along with Gyeongbokgung, Changdeokgung, and Deoksugung. Built in 1483 during the reign of King Seongjong, Changgyeonggung Palace is also referred to as “Donggwol (East Palace)”. After the forced abdication of King Gojong, the Japanese launched a project to violate the Korean royal palaces under the...   Read more