Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation opens Paris office

The Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation’s branch in Paris, France. (OKCHF)

A foundation run by the Korea Heritage Service opened a branch office in Paris to facilitate efforts to repatriate Korean cultural heritage from Europe, the third such opening overseas after Japan and the US.

The Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation’s Paris office, inaugurated Tuesday, will start working with the National Library of France in October to locate old Korean maps within the library, according to the foundation.

“We expect about 40 maps, all dating to the Joseon-era (1392-1910), to be found and we will conduct a joint study of them,” a foundation official with direct knowledge of the matter told The Korea Herald.

The search for the maps will run through 2027 at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France (BnF), as the French national library aims to streamline ways to explore old Asian maps in general. Korea is the first Asian partner to team up in the project, the official noted.

“Our work with the BnF will focus on studying maps and making findings public through symposiums, rather than having the maps on public view,” the official added, referring to an April-July BnF exhibition last year of “Jikji” -- the world’s oldest book printed with movable metal type recognized by UNESCO in 2001.

The book, short for “Jikjisimcheyojeol,” is a compendium of Buddhist teachings published in 1377, three years after the death of the Goryeo-era Buddhist monk who authored it.

The book is the second of a two-volume series held at the BnF since 1950, when the library was gifted the item.

The donation came from an antiques dealer, who acquired it from a senior French diplomat who was stationed in Korea from 1888 to 1905. The item is believed to have been purchased by the diplomat while in Korea.

Korea’s efforts to have the book on permanent loan from France have made little progress.

As of this month, the foundation estimates close to 50,000 Korean artifacts are scattered across Europe. There are estimated to be about 15,000 in Germany, followed by 12,000 in the UK and 6,500 in France.

“The fact that Paris is home to UNESCO and is where Korea’s growing cultural influence is seen and felt all led to having our Europe branch there,” the foundation official said of the latest office launch.

Japan and the US, where the first and second overseas offices were set up in 2013 and 2016, respectively, account for the largest holdings of Korean heritage at about 100,000 and 65,000 pieces, respectively.

By Choi Si-young(siyoungchoi@heraldcorp.com)