120 Years of History of Dongnimmun Gate
Dongnimmun Gate was built on the site of Yeongeunmun Gate on Uiju-ro on which envoys traveled to and from China for diplomatic relations. The gate was constructed to declare Korea’s spirit of independence to China, Japan, and other world powers. The construction funds were raised through the Independent, a popular newspaper at the time in which government officials, princes, the general public, and even foreigners participated.
The exhibition displays The Korea Repository and The Independent, in which the articles on the foundation stone ceremony for the Dongnimmun Gate have been published, books published by a foreigner in the modern era containing pictures of Yeongeunmun and Dongnimmun Gates, and tourist postcards and leaflets during the Japanese colonial era. The pictures of Dongnimmun from the period when it used to be Yeongeunmun to the present are displayed on a large-sized screen.
We hope this exhibition will be an opportunity to reflect on the significance and the meaning of Dongnimmun which have been distorted or understated over the course of 120 years.