The merit of the *Nara Document on Authenticity* is that it gave momentum to a conversation questioning the validity of universalist claims of conservation principles originating in Europe. The document represented a first stage in acknowledging the plurality of sources of knowledge about conservation, the coexistence of multiple discourses which richly complement each other. This approach responded to fears that limiting principles lead to standardization and cultural uniformity (Taylor 2004, 420) and challenged the Western focus on materiality and monumentality. The very notion of 'monumental' had been constructed on the features of Western cathedrals and palaces, and did not apply to aboriginal sites in Australia or modest religious buildings from Asia and elsewhere. But these were, nevertheless, monumental in their own right, their monumentality bound to a cultural context and rooted in the respect for nature and rich spiritual traditions, as critics of the Venice Charter have often argued (Wei, Aass 1989; Chung, Kim 2010). In India and other parts of Asia, colonial power relations were responsible for imposing Western definitions and practices related to heritage, risking to "negate indigenous practices" (Krishna Menon 1994, 42) and supersede them. This claimed universality has been challenged since the Nara conference by complementing technically-oriented conservation with indigenous techniques, recognized as intangible heritage in danger of being lost and forgotten. That is why, to some extent, the Asian movement to enlarge the notion of acceptable best practice of conservation has been a response to these colonial forces and an attempt at decolonization.

Following the Nara conference, the ensuing proliferation of charters, conventions, declarations, and recommendations stemming from Asia was in itself a reflection of how the notion of heritage is expanding, to incorporate local specificities from all over the globe. Perceived as peripheral in relation to the Western world, various Asian countries started to voice their own concerns about heritage conservation, in an attempt to get closer to the so-called centre proclaimed to be the authoritative source of relevant knowledge about heritage. In 2005, UN-ESCO adopted the *Hoi An Protocols for Best Conservation Practice in Asia*, a series of guidelines clarifying the ambiguities of the *Nara Document on Authenticity* and giving recognition to the indigenous and minority cultures incorporated in modern Asian states (UNESCO Bangkok 2009, 17). It voiced the particular concerns of Asian countries, including a culturally-sensitive definition of authenticity:

Authenticity, the defining characteristic of heritage, is a culturally relative attribute to be found in continuity, but not necessarily in the continuity of material only. (18)

Other examples of regulatory documents, stemming from China, include: *Principles for the Conservation of Heritage Sites in China* (2000); the Shanghai Charter on museums and intangible heritage (2002); the *Xi'an Declaration on the Conservation of the Setting of Heritage Structures, Sites and Areas* (2005). At the same time, Japan has continued to formulate its own perspective on heritage management, through documents such as: the *Yamato Declaration on Integrated Approaches for Safeguarding Tangible and Intangible Cultural Heritage* (2004); the *Okinawa Declaration on Intangible and Tangible Cultural Heritage* (2004); the *Himeji Recommendations* (2012). Taken individually, most of these have had little impact on the international regulation, because they are often very broad formulations. They have more of a cumulative effect: together, they voice their resistance to eurocentric practices, and demand respect for cultural diversity and local specificity. At the same time, by promoting their own agenda, these countries have managed to garner visibility and prestige on the global stage.

#### 4 South Korean Heritage Diplomacy

In the two decades following the formulation of the *Nara Document*, South Korea has joined the conversation, organized international forums that eventually resulted in documents that reference these countries (see **table 1**). Although these documents have proved much less influential than the *Nara Document*, they have nevertheless continued to proliferate. It is my contention that South Korea has tried to actively participate in the conversation open by the Japanese case, and has issued international declarations which promote its own heritage agenda and try to influence international conservation practices. Declarations and recommendations emerging from Korea are clearly an attempt to integrate the specificities of Korean culture and traditions into a larger, international frame, and to formulate international guidelines based on (or considering) the Korean reality. Projecting the image of a strong country, influential enough to organize international forums labelled with the UNESCO or the ICOMOS brands, is just one aspect of the phenomenon, perhaps not even the most important one. More significantly, South Korea aims to project the image of a culturally rich country, whose cultural practices and traditions have enough global relevance to stand at the basis of international guidelines for best practices.

The involvement of governmental institutions in the organization of conferences and forums, and in the drafting of declarations, reflects the high stakes at play in voicing the Korean experience of cultural heritage to the world. Most recommendations and declarations are drafted by ICOMOS-Korea, with the support of governmental organizations (the Cultural Heritage Administration, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism of Korea), while others are formulated and promoted by professional organizations (for instance, the *mAAN Seoul Declaration 2011 on Industrial Heritage in Asia*, drafted by the modern Asian Architectural Network, with the support of the Korean government). These institutions bear the responsibility to create a local framework of heritage management adapted for Korean culture and naturally emerging from Korean traditions. But they also assume the diplomatic role of conveying local experiences to an international audience, and promote them through international declarations, by claiming universal relevance.

**Table 1** List of declarations and recommendations originating from South Korea

One such case is *The Seoul Declaration on Tourism in Asia's Historic Towns and Areas*, which proposes several strategies addressing the impact of tourism (i.e. gentrification, commodification of local properties, values, and traditions for tourism consumption) "on the fabric and identity of many historic towns and areas of Asia" (ICO-MOS National Committee of Korea 2005). The declaration was strategically issued in advance of the ICOMOS General Assembly, to be held later that year in Xi'an, China; hence the text explicitly states the hope that it will become relevant beyond the regional boundaries of Asia, calling

for the declaration to be presented to the ICOMOS General Assembly in Xi'an, China in October 2005 so that its recommendations can be shared with the wider network of ICOMOS committees and partners, and that it can help encourage cooperation between National and International Committees on this universal subject of tourism and historic towns and areas. (ICOMOS National Committee of Korea 2005)

According to the declaration, the intensification of tourism in Asian historic towns has coincided with the emergence of experiential tourism, through which visitors seek to get a more authentic sense of the place and immerse both physically and spiritually in the local culture. In response, the declaration emphasizes the "need to maintain the authenticity of heritage places" and "ensure the introduction of respectful and authentic cultural tourism to heritage sites" (ICOMOS National Committee of Korea 2005). However, the mention of authenticity adds nothing new to the international guidelines for the preservation of cultural heritage, as authenticity has long been a working concept in the identification and protection of heritage. Although the text of the declaration identifies authenticity as an "issue" to be concerned about, there is no further mention in the "Strategies and Approach" section. Therefore, the declaration fails to illustrate concrete strategies for safeguarding the authenticity of material fabric, intangible values and traditions associated with heritage sites. The most meaningful of the strategies is the suggestion to involve the local communities and all ranges of stakeholders in the planning of effective tourism management, because they need to be educated on the importance and impact of tourism, and also constantly consulted. South Korea itself offers a prominent example of good practice in this direction: in the years following *The Seoul Declaration*, the Seoul Metropolitan Government set to restore and partially reconstruct the Seoul City Wall, aiming to get the historic centre of Seoul listed as a UNESCO site. Although the fortress walls of the old capital functioned as a means of exclusion and marginalization of certain social groups during Chosŏn dynasty (1392-1910) (because they had to live outside the inner capital), the Seoul Metropolitan Government artificially reinvented the wall as a symbol of community life and social inclusion. In order to strengthen the authenticity claims, the Seoul Metropolitan Government promoted the lifestyle of a few residential communities situated along the wall as intangible heritage (although without a formal designation in the national registry). This ostensibly showed that the wall was not simply a lifeless monument devoid of meaning for the people, but had been actively integrated in their lives (Sîntionean 2017).

The *ICOMOS Declaration on Heritage and Metropolis in Asia and the Pacific* addresses the difficulty of protecting heritage in dense metropolitan areas, and broadly formulates recommendations for developing adequate policies. The declaration is noteworthy for its concerned tone, signalling the impact of intense urban development on cultural heritage and its surrounding areas. In particular, the text of the declaration highlights the dangers of "major public and corporate investments in real estate densification" and the negative impact of metropolitan expansion, such as

deep social, economic and physical transformation and pressures of an unprecedented scale and nature on communities and the heritage. (ICOMOS National Committee of Korea 2008, 5)

Unlike other declarations which tend to be very broadly formulated and conventional in expression, this text is remarkably specific in pinpointing the risks of "land speculation, loss of traditional knowledge, corruption", possibly "leading to the large scale loss or alteration of significant structures, sites and areas" (5). Although these risks can occur in all metropolitan areas around the globe, the declaration focuses on the particular context of Asia and the Pacific area, where "rapid growth" and "new urbanization and infrastructures" (5) are more likely to endanger heritage. Likewise, the recommendations and principles formulated in this declaration have global relevance, due to their broad and rather vague language. For instance, the text urges metropolitan authorities to recognize cultural heritage as a non-renewable asset, which is already a widely accepted notion among practitioners and scholars of heritage. Other common-sense recommendations include planning programmes that integrate the protection of heritage, along with adequate legislation for safeguarding both heritage sites and their settings and surroundings. The suggestion to develop protection tools based on "recognized best practice and local conditions and traditions" (6) adds nothing new to the language and content of previous international charters.

The remarkable element of the 2007 ICOMOS declaration adopted in South Korea is that it discloses to benefit

from the particular experience of Seoul and the ongoing efforts of the Korean and metropolitan authorities to protect and conserve cultural heritage sites and their surroundings, including sites inscribed on the World Heritage List and traditional neighbourhoods, as well as the successful achievements of major urban revitalisation projects like the Ch'ŏnggyech'ŏn. (ICOMOS National Committee of Korea 2008, 5)

The mention of the Ch'ŏnggyech'ŏn reconstruction project in the context of heritage conservation is particularly problematic. Unfolded from July 2003 to September 2005 in Seoul, the project replaced an aging, increasingly unsafe highway with an artificial stream. It aimed to restore the old Ch'ŏnggyech'ŏn stream (gradually buried in concrete from the end of the 1950s), together with the cultural and historical heritage alongside it, improve traffic flow, and create a natural ecosystem in the heart of Seoul. In 2007, when the *ICOMOS Declaration on Heritage and Metropolis in Asia and the Pacific* was drafted, the Ch'ŏnggyech'ŏn reconstruction project was hailed by the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the general public as a successful case of urban regeneration and environmental improvement, a landmark attracting tourists. The public and political support the project enjoyed explains its mentioning in the *ICOMOS Declaration*. However, critics of the project (Cho 2010; Kim 2020) have since pinpointed the lack of historical and ecological authenticity of the reconstructed stream, misconstrued as a *pogwŏn* 'restoration' of the original watercourse. Given the high political stakes of the project2 and the speed of project execution (27 months), the authentic restoration of historic sites along the stream was readily sacrificed. The compromises made in the reconstruction of historic bridges are most indicative in this respect: Ogansu Bridge was reconstructed parallel to the watercourse, not surpassing it; Kwanggyo Bridge could not be reconstructed in its confirmed original location, now occupied by a large traffic intersection, and was moved upstream; and the original Sup'yo Bridge remained in Changch'ungdan Park, where it was relocated in 1958, because the width of the new stream exceeded the length of the bridge; instead, the Seoul Metropolitan Government opted for a replica of Sup'yo Bridge. Moreover, the water was pumped from the Han River, causing the project to lack ecological authenticity and instead present only a deceptive spectacle of nature, "inconducive as a habitat of biological species" (Cho 2010, 161). Considering these authenticity issues, which became apparent even in the planning stage, it is puzzling that the *ICOMOS Declaration on Heritage and Metropolis in Asia and the Pacific* mentions the revitalization of Ch'ŏnggyech'ŏn in the context of heritage protection from excessive development. The *Andong Recommendations* are based on the expertise gained from preserving Yangdong and Hahoe, two historic and traditional villages organically integrating the local residents' lifestyles and traditions. The reality of preserving these historic villages has revealed that tensions easily arise when preservation measures undertaken by the authorities impinge on the res-

2 The reconstruction of Ch'ŏnggyech'ŏn was the focal point of Lee Myung-bak's (Yi Myŏng-Bak) election campaign for the role of Mayor of Seoul, a position he occupied from 2002 to 2006. He then capitalized on the public success of the revitalization project, and won the presidential election in 2007.

idents' aspirations to alter their traditional houses, designated as cultural treasures. In Andong, the epitome of Confucian tradition and the area where the Hahoe Folk Village is situated, the locals have argued for improved quality of life and petitioned the Cultural Heritage Administration to modify the house interiors by installing modern facilities such as Western-style toilets and kitchens (Moon 2011, 95). In Yangdong, when the owners of thatched-roofed houses wanted to extend their interiors and change the function of the auxiliary facilities, they entered a conflict with the authorities over what constitutes the architectural *wŏnhyŏng* 'original form' that has to be preserved and protected, since most houses have continually changed over time (Kim, Kang 2013). These conflicts indicate that the desire for sustainable living in traditional houses fundamentally collides with the authorities' understanding of preservation principles and their insistence on maintaining the integrity of material fabric. Although not naming these challenges, the *Andong Recommendations* reflect the experience of actively negotiating with the locals and propose a residents-participatory model for the making of conservation and management policies. The text formulates concrete recommendations for each category of stakeholders involved in the conservation of traditional villages: the people living in Yangdong and Hahoe, the local authorities of nearby Kyŏngju and Andong cities, national authorities, members of the tourism industry, and international organizations such as UNESCO and ICOMOS. Directly addressing each of these participants to the conservation process, the guidelines offer significantly more constructive and specific advice than the other declarations analyzed here. A recurring point is the authors' insistence that each stakeholder properly communicate its evaluations, planning, and management to the other parties involved. Some guidelines are particularly pragmatic in character; for instance, tour operators are advised

that congestion pressure in the villages be minimised by establishing adequate coordination of visits by the local tourism office and the tour operators. (ICOMOS National Committee of Korea 2006)

The presence of the locals living in their ancestral homes (as opposed to a village museum) has raised great concern for sustainable tourism and for ways to diminish the impact of tourism on the quality of life of residential communities. The text of the *Andong Recommendations* suggests, for instance, tourism marketing targeted to audiences interested in culture, instead of mass tourism, and appropriate scheduling of large tourist groups. Moreover, regional and national authorities are advised to incorporate the expertise and traditional skills of the residents in the preservation of tangible and intangible heritage (ICOMOS National Committee of Korea 2006).

In 2006, when the recommendations were drafted, the two villages were still nominated on the UNESCO Tentative List, aspiring to receive World Heritage Site status. Even before receiving this recognition in 2010, the villages were struggling to cope with large number of tourists, and the UNESCO designation only aggravated tourism impact. The inhabitants of the Hahoe Folk Village, for instance, reported that the World Heritage Site status had only a mild beneficial impact on the village, while increasing invasion of privacy, litter, traffic congestion, overcrowding, and noise pollution affected the quality of their lives (Kim 2016, 7). Research has shown that even the ideal participatory model did not generate the expected results, since the bureaucrats from the cultural sector, heritage professionals, and the residents could not reach a consensus over what represents the best conservation approach for all the stakeholders (Kang, Park 2011). Therefore, the *Andong Recommendations* proposed a standard model of sustainable practice for historic and traditional villages around the world, but the realities of conservation practice have proved to be much more challenging. It is possible that the Korean authorities promoted the *Andong Recommendations* with a purely diplomatic agenda, in order to make the two villages more visible internationally, while they were undergoing the screening for the UN-ESCO inscription. At the very least, the Korean government disseminated knowledge and expertise arising from the Korean experience of dealing with traditional built heritage.

Another prominent aspect reflected in the forums organized by South Korean institutions is that their declarations and recommendations revolve around the individual concerns of South Korea. While the promotion of the historic centre of Seoul was one such concern, the repatriation of lost cultural properties is another notable example. The issue has long been an object of dispute with Japan, given that many cultural properties have reached private and public art collections in Japan during the colonial period (1910-45). The 2011 International Forum on the Return of Cultural Property (resulting in another *Seoul Declaration*) illustrated the ability of the South Korean government to organize an international debate on a topic that is intensely discussed in Korean society and media. This notable ability to channel the international conversation towards topics of particular local interest is interpreted here as an efficient form of soft power and soft diplomacy that generates positive results in international relations. However, the resulting *Declaration of the International Forum on the Return of Cultural Property* (*Seoul Declaration*) does not contribute significantly to the existing legislation and principles for the return of stolen or illegally exported cultural artefacts. As most texts analyzed in this paper, the language of the declaration is very generic and the proposed guidelines add nothing substantial to the international charters. For instance, the 2011 declaration stresses that

bilateral and multilateral international cooperation for the return of cultural property constitutes a crucial means to restore a people's identity and enhance mutual understanding and respect. (International Forum on the Return of Cultural Property 2011)

The 1970 UNESCO *Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property* has already recognized the principle of international cooperation as "one of the most efficient means of protecting each country's cultural property" against the dangers of illicit appropriation of heritage (UNESCO 1970). Furthermore, the *Seoul Declaration* formulates a series of recommendations for good practice: the continuous use of databases of stolen cultural properties, the creation and support of institutions and networks that cooperate for the return of heritage, and the active use of existing legal frameworks. Apart from the broad scope of these propositions, their impact is limited by the fact that none of them are legally binding: the declaration represents a mere set of recommendations. In my view, their value resides in their ability to convey the South Korean cultural and political standpoint within the international debates and practices on the repatriation of cultural property.

#### 5 Conclusion

A multitude of such declarations regarding various aspects of cultural or natural heritage conservation have proliferated in Asia since the 1994 Nara conference. However, critics of these charters, declarations and recommendations have voiced concerns about their inefficiency, lack of clarity, broad character, and repetitive content, sometimes duplicating existing charters. Ken Taylor (2004, 430) has criticized even the *Nara Document* for "its generalised nature" and for "being non-specific". Tim Winter (2012, 2) has expressed concern that claims of "Asian approaches" to heritage

risk creating a policy arena that bifurcates the east and west via essentialist constructions of "culture" in and across regions.

Given the proliferation of charters, Luxen (2014, 464) has questioned their credibility and also their coherence: being so broadly formulated, they leave room for diverging interpretations, causing confusion.

Likewise, the declarations and recommendations emerging from South Korea have brought little novelty to international discussions about heritage conservation. These documents mostly replicate principles already formulated in previous charters and conventions, and share their generalized language on the importance of heritage conservation, communication between stakeholders, and international cooperation. The broadly formulated principles are somehow to be expected: by their very nature, international charters and declarations have to shape universal guidelines, reflecting internationally recognized conservation practices. The fact that South Korean declarations mostly repeat the content of existing international documents or are very similar in content does explain why they have had very little actual impact in the international field of conservation practice. Although these documents have been recognized by international bodies like ICOMOS and UNESCO, they have not generated sweeping changes or further international charters deriving from South Korean proposals. Although a few guidelines for conservation practice mention the declarations and recommendations analyzed here,3 it is difficult to assess to what degree they were actually influential in shaping concrete practices. One possible factor diminishing their impact is their non-compulsory nature as mere recommendations for good practice, lacking a legally binding status.

Nevertheless, the present investigation has found that the merit of the declarations issued through the diplomatic efforts of the South Korean government lies elsewhere. South Korean institutions involved in the management of heritage have drafted documents focusing on topics of particular interest for South Korea, such as the protection of historic towns and traditional villages, or the return of illegally appropriated cultural properties. Most importantly, the documents stemmed from the expertise and practice of Korean institutions, demonstrating that management practices are highly influenced by local cultural values. As a consequence, the language of the Korean declarations finely balanced the universality specific to international principles with an adequate flexibility for cultural and regional specificity. Therefore, the documents have managed to push the international conversation further against the notion of global cultural uniformity and universality of practice. This power of self-representation and the will to communicate shared values, to exchange expertise on heritage have been interpreted here as forms of heritage diplomacy. It is evident that South Korea is making every effort to surpass a perceived identity of a peripheral country and

3 For example, Elizabeth Vines (2005) mentions *The Seoul Declaration on Tourism in Asia's Historic Towns and Areas* in her practical guide for the conservation of Asian heritage, including it among other charters stemming from Asian countries (China, Indonesia, India). However, Vines understands these guidelines as having become "a conservation code of practice for the countries concerned" (Vines 2005, 2), an understanding which suggests the limited sphere of influence of such documents to a national scale. The *Andong Recommendations* are listed in the bibliography of a conservation plan for the Hill End historic village in Australia (Morrison 2013), although it is unclear to what degree the recommendations were actually put in practice or shaped the planning process.

position itself closer to the centre of the international conversation on heritage management principles. The use of heritage declarations by South Korea makes an enlightening case of alternative diplomatic means to gain international visibility and not only participate in, but also trigger and influence the global conversation about heritage conservation practices.

#### **Bibliography**

punsŏk ŭl chungsimŭro" 역사마을의 참여형 보존관리계획을 위한 제도적 접근방 식에 관한 연구 – 하회 양동마을 보존협의체 지원조례의 특성 분석을 중심으로 (Institutional Approach to Collaborative Conservation and Management Planning for Historic Villages – Based on Policy Analysis of Local Ordinance for Hahoe, Yangdong Conservation Councils). *Taehan Kŏnch'uk Hakhoe non‑ munjip – kyehoekkye*, 27(3), 241-52.

Morrison, C. (2013). "Conservation Management & Cultural Tourism Master Plan for Hill End Historic Site". https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au.

UNESCO (1970). *Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illic‑ it Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property*. https:// en.unesco.org/about-us/legal-affairs/convention-meansprohibiting-and-preventing-illicit-import-export-and.

UNESCO Bangkok (2009). *Hoi An Protocols for Best Conservation Practice in Asia. Professional Guidelines for Assuring and Preserving the Authenticity of Herit‑ age Sites in the Context of the Cultures of Asia*. Bangkok: UNESCO Bangkok. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000182617.

Vines, E. (2005). *Streetwise Asia: A Practical Guide for the Conservation and Revi‑ talisation of Heritage Cities and Towns in Asia*. Bangkok: UNESCO Bangkok.

Wei, Chen; Aass, A. (1989). "Heritage Conservation: East and West". *ICOMOS Information*, 3, 3-8.

Winter, T. (2012). "Beyond Eurocentrism? Heritage Conservation and the Politics of Difference". *International Journal of Heritage Studies*, 20(2), 123-37. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527258.2012.736403.

Winter, T. (2015). "Heritage Diplomacy". *International Journal of Heritage Stud‑ ies*, 21(10), 997-1015. https://doi.org/10.1080/13527258.2015.104 1412.

### **Section 3** Material Culture

**145**

**Cultural Exchanges Between Korea and the West** Artifacts and Intangible Heritage edited by Jong-Chol An and Ariane Perrin

## Maritime, Christianity and Adventure: Slovenian Discovery of Korea

Chikako Shigemori Bučar

Univerza v Ljubljani, Slovenija

**Abstract** Based on past research by specialists in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean studies in Slovenia and Austria, this article discusses the discovery of Korea from the Slovenian perspective. The earliest encounter between a Slovenian and a Korean was probably in 1766, when a Jesuit scholar met with a Korean scholar at the Chinese court. Recent research on picture postcards and photographs reveals visits by members of the Austro-Hungarian Navy to Korean ports. In 1923, a female adventurer and writer from Slovenia traveled through the Korean peninsula. It is still unknown whether any Slovenians were among the missionaries in Tokwon.

**Keywords** Korea. Slovenia. Hallerstein. Hong Tae-Yong. Austro-Hungarian navy. Alma Karlin. Tokwon (Tŏkwŏn) Abbey.

**Summary** 1 Introduction. – 2 Scientific Exchanges in the Mid-Eighteenth Century. – 3 Maritime Activities by Members of the Austro-Hungarian Navy. – 3.1 Period and Background of Maritime Activities. – 3.2 Anton Haus. – 3.3 Albums of Postcard and Photograph Collections. – 4 Travel Records by a Female Adventurer, Alma M. Karlin. – 5 Christian Missionary Work in Wŏnsan. – 6 From Individual Contacts to the Real Discovery of a Nation.

#### 1 Introduction

Based on our recent extensive research on old picture postcards, photographs, and artefacts from East Asia, which are currently held by museums and libraries in Slovenia,1 various contacts by persons from

1 *East Asian Collections in Slovenia: Inclusion of Slovenia in the Global Exchanges of Objects and Ideas with East Asia*, 2018-21, funded by the Slovenian Research Agen-

**Studi e ricerche 32** e-ISSN 2610-9123 | ISSN 2610-993X ISBN [ebook] 978-88-6969-717-3 | ISBN [print] 978-88-6969-718-0

**Peer review | Open access 147** Submitted 2022-09-05 | Accepted 2023-03-02 | Published 2023-08-30 © 2023 Shigemori Bučar | cb 4.0 **DOI 10.30687/978‑88-6969‑717-3/007**

Slovenia in Korea and with Koreans have been identified, particularly toward the end of the nineteenth century and in the first decades of the twentieth century. With regard to the professions and motivations of individuals that had direct contact with Korea, there were at least three different groups of people from this part of the world (i.e. central Europe). These are members of the Austro-Hungarian Navy that traveled to East Asia between the 1890s and 1910s, Christian missionaries of the Benedictine order that stationed in what is now North Korea up to the 1930s, and the female adventurer Alma M. Karlin from Celje, who traveled through Korea in 1923.

Aside from the research mentioned above, several earlier research reports are available on the life and work of the Jesuit scholar Ferdinand Hallerstein, who was born in Carniola and acted as an official at the Chinese court in the eighteenth century. The first direct contact between persons from what is now Slovenia and Koreans was in the middle of the eighteenth century.

Based on the above, this article reconstructs the exchanges by people with a Slovenian background with Koreans – first around 1765, and then between the 1890s and 1930s.

The main part of this article is composed of the following sections, following the natural timeline of individual contacts: the scientific exchanges in the middle of the eighteenth century in China; the maritime activities by members of the Austro-Hungarian Navy; the travel records by a female adventurer, and Christian missionary work. The conclusion discusses the nature and form of these individual contacts, as well as the perception and knowledge of the general population in Slovenia about East Asian culture and people.

The maritime exchanges with East Asia, particularly in the last years of the nineteenth century and the first decades of the twentieth century, were quite intense and lively, at least based on materials discovered so far: picture postcards, photographs, various artefacts, letters, and diaries, which are now archived in several institutions in Slovenia. However, before looking into the maritime activities, special mention must be made of eighteenth-century scientific activities at the Chinese court.

cy. The findings are regularly updated on the following website: https://vazcollections.si/.

#### 2 Scientific Exchanges in the Mid-Eighteenth Century

The Jesuit scientist Ferdinand Augustin Haller von Hallerstein (1703‑1774) was born in Carniola, at that time part of the Habsburg Monarchy. He grew up in what is now Mengeš, Slovenia, some 15 km north of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. Hallerstein studied in Ljubljana and later in Vienna, and for the purpose of missionary work traveled via Portuguese Goa and Macao to Beijing. He then held an important position in the court of the Qing dynasty at the time of the Qianlong Emperor 乾隆 (1711‑99). Hallerstein's Chinese name was Liu Songling 劉松齡, and he succeeded Ignatius Kögler (1680‑1746), also a Jesuit scholar from the German-speaking region, and acted as the head of the Imperial Board of Astronomy from 1746 until his death in 1774. More about his activities are reported in studies by Šmitek (1995), Saje (2009; 2015), Koidl (2020), and others. In relation to Korea, it has been confirmed that Hallerstein, in addition to his most important achievements in astronomy and statistics, also worked on drawing geographical maps in cooperation with other Jesuit scientists, particularly a map of the hunting territory of the Chinese leader in the vicinity of Korea, the Mulan 木蘭 region (Saje 2009, 93-4). It is also known that, because of his good reputation as astronomer, mathematician, and mediator of western science to East Asia, the notable Korean scientist, astronomer, and neo-Confucianist Hong Tae-Yong 洪大容 (in Chinese Hong Darong) visited him in Beijing. According to Hallerstein's letters to his brother in Europe, Koreans visited the Chinese court every year, and immediately after their arrival they usually came to the house of the Jesuits (Saje 2015, 28). The exchange between Hallerstein and Hong Tae-Yong in 1766 are recorded in Hong's writings in classical Chinese and in Korean (30). Hallerstein was sixty-two years old and Hong was thirty-four at that time. Hallerstein's name was known to Korean intellectuals thanks to Hong's writings (30).

According to Ledyard (1974; 1982),2 Hong Tae-Yong visited Beijing as the secretary of his uncle Hong Ŏk 洪檍 (1722‑1809), who was a member of the solstitial embassy from Korea in 1765 and 1766. The Koreans visited the Qing court every year around the time of the winter solstice, arrived in Beijing a few days before the lunar New Year, and stayed for about two months. In this particular year, they left Seoul on December 13th, 1765, and reached Beijing on February 6th, 1766 (Ledyard 1982, 63). In his *Peking Memoir*, which is cate-

2 I am grateful for the help of Burglind Jungmann, Professor emerita of Korean art and visual culture, UCLA, who was present at the conference *East and West in Korean Studies: Cultural Exchanges between Korea and the West: Artifacts and Intangible Heritage*, held by Ca' Foscari University of Venice in May 2021; she told me about Gari Ledyard and his articles about Hong Tae-Yong.

gorized among diplomatic travel diaries written by Yi dynasty Koreans in the fifteenth to nineteenth centuries (Ledyard 1974, 1), Hong Tae-Yong describes in detail his observations of people he met, and the content of his encounters in diverse situations. Hong describes Hallerstein and another Jesuit scholar from Bavaria:

Hallerstein is sixty-two years old, and Gogeisl is sixty-four.  Both follow the Manchu style in their gowns and caps, and in shaving their heads back to the crown. (quoted in Ledyard 1982, 70)

Although the Jesuit astronomers were not particularly anxious to spend time with the Korean visitors, Hong persisted and obtained appointments with them on at least four occasions. Hong's intention during his visits was to refine his astronomical and mathematical knowledge. On the first visit, they discussed the workings of a pipe organ in the church, and Hong insisted on the confirmation of his correct understanding. On the following occasions, Hong asked to see and have explained the clock tower and the observation station (Ledyard 1982, 71). Hong was interested in details of instruments, such as the telescope, watches, alarm clocks, compasses, and so on. On the other hand, Catholicism was never at focus of their conversation (72, 97). Details of these encounters between Hallerstein, Gogeisl, and Hong Tae-Yong are also described in a recent article by Koidl (2020), an in-depth study of Austrian missionaries in contact with Koreans from the very beginning, in the middle of the seventeenth century, and up to the present. According to Koidl, Hong in his *Yu P'o mundap* 劉鮑問答 (Questions and Answers with Yu and P'o),3 an account of these exchanges written later, mentions rather different interests of one side and the other:

While Koreans wanted to learn more from Westerners about celestial globes, precise astronomic calculations, and the Gregorian calendar, Westerners wanted to attract Koreans to Christianity. (28)

Ledyard (1982) further describes two other eighteenth-century memoirs that may be compared with Hong's *Peking Memoir*. They are *Nogajae Yŏnhaengnok* by Kim Chang-Ŏp, who visited Beijing in 1712‑13, and *Yŏrha ilgi* by Pak Chi-Wŏn, who visited Beijing in 1780 (85). Because Hallerstein was in office at the Chinese court between

3 Koidl's description is based on a translation of this work into modern vernacular Korean, published in 2008.

1739 and 1774, it seems that Hong's *Memoir* is the only written record in which the details of Hallerstein's contacts with Koreans were recorded. There are probably no other written accounts about Hallerstein from the Korean perspective.

Whether or not this encounter between Hallerstein and Hong Tae-Yong should be counted as one of the 'Slovenian discoveries' of Korea is perhaps difficult to determine. Hallerstein was from what is now Slovenia and a prominent European intellectual at the time, and he regularly reported his activities, facts, and situations in China with a broader view of the East Asian region. His reports were sent to the academies in London, Paris, and Saint-Petersburg, and he often wrote private letters to his brother Weichard, also a Jesuit, who was based in Brussels (Saje 2015, 17).

Hallerstein's great reputation in Korea already in the eighteenth century is confirmed, but Hallerstein himself probably did not recognize his encounter with the Koreans particularly as his 'discovery of Korea'.

#### 3 Maritime Activities by Members of the Austro-Hungarian Navy

#### **3.1 Period and Background of Maritime Activities**

More than a hundred years later, Austrian merchant and war ships started to sail to East Asia and around the world predominantly for diplomatic, trade, research, and educational purposes. When these maritime activities became more frequent, many men from Slovenian ethnic territory also sailed on board the Austro-Hungarian warships as officers, petty-officers, and seamen (Marinac 2017, 189). One can identify individual warships, officers, and crew members, who mainly sailed from the Austro-Hungarian port in Pula (today in Croatia) and came into contact with Korean locals in Korean ports, and with Japanese officers stationed in Korea shortly after the Russo-Japanese War. Some specific gifts and souvenirs from Korea from that period are also held by museums in Slovenia. Table 1 outlines the period from the 1860s up to the Second World War in relation to the Korean and Slovenian nations. The Austro-Hungarian dual monarchy, in the framework of which these officers and seamen had direct contacts with the East Asians, came to an end in 1918.

The existence of the dual monarchy of Austria-Hungary (1867‑1918) overlaps with the last thirty years of the Chosŏn dynasty and the succeeding Great Korean Empire (1897‑1910). From 1910 until the end of the Second World War, Korea was annexed to the Japanese Empire. Today, most of the materials related to the Austria-Hungarian Navy of that period are archived in the Sergej Mašera Maritime Museum in Piran, a town on the Adriatic coast of Slovenia. Because the Slovenian ethnic region was part of Austria-Hungary with its ports on the coast, and because of the construction of the Austrian Southern Railway through this region (between Vienna and Trieste, completed in 1857), many Slovenian young men, also from the interior, sought jobs in the navy. Some of these navy members' legacy can also be found in other institutions in today's Slovenia; for example, at the National and University Library in Ljubljana, as well as in private collections. Most numerous are picture postcards and photographs, but there are also diaries and letters of individual members of the navy. Sent postcards reveal various information regarding the persons on both ends of the correspondence, and the dates and circumstances of the communication (Marinac 2017; Shigemori Bučar 2019a, 2019b). The postal systems of various countries and photography technology both developed quickly during this period, and therefore, supported by the commercial activities of the photography and printing industries, sending short messages on picture postcards came into fashion around the turn of the century. Some members of the navy were very eager to buy and send postcards with local Asian scenes. Regarding Korea-related contacts, particularly on the basis of archived postcards and photographs, three main collectors have been identified in the museum in Piran (Shigemori Bučar 2019a, 138-9).

#### **3.2 Anton Haus**

Anton Haus joined the Austro-Hungarian Navy in 1869 and became an instructor at the Imperial and Royal Naval Academy in Rijeka. He was on board SMS *Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia* on a mission in the Far East in relation to the Boxer Rebellion. According to

**Chikako Shigemori Bučar Maritime, Christianity and Adventure: Slovenian Discovery of Korea**

**Figure 1** Postcard of the Korean peninsula, used by Anton Haus

#### **Chikako Shigemori Bučar Maritime, Christianity and Adventure: Slovenian Discovery of Korea**

**Figure 2** Reverse of the postcard in figure 1

Donko (2013, 360), the ship arrived in Chemulp'o (now Inch'ŏn) on August 30th, 1901, and was anchored there for some days. He visited the city of Seoul with the Austro-Hungarian consul in Shanghai, Julius Pisko (Marinac 2017, 87). Haus himself had to return home on other commercial ships due to his son's sudden death, but the cruiser SMS *Kaiserin und Königin Maria Theresia* later called on Kŏmundo (巨文島, a.k.a. Port Hamilton), Pusan (釜山), and Masanhappo (馬山 合浦) as well (84-90). Later, Haus served in the ministry in Vienna and in 1904 used copies of a postcard that was produced in Austria-Hungary, showing a map of the Korean peninsula with place names changed into peculiar Austrian names **[figs 1‑2]**. Because he himself was in the area a few years earlier and was probably very concerned with the political developments of the time, he found this postcard production very timely and amusing, and thus used it for correspondence with his relatives (Shigemori Bučar 2019a, 140‑3).

**Chikako Shigemori Bučar Maritime, Christianity and Adventure: Slovenian Discovery of Korea**

**Figure 3** Postcard sent from Korea in August 1906, Koršič collection

**Figure 4** Postcard sent from Dairen on August 10th, 1906, Koršič collection

**Chikako Shigemori Bučar Maritime, Christianity and Adventure: Slovenian Discovery of Korea**

**Figure 5** Postcard of the Russian cruiser *Varyag*, Koršič collection

#### **3.3 Albums of Postcard and Photograph Collections**

#### 3.3.1 Ivan Koršič

The navy military chaplain Ivan Koršič (1870‑1941) never traveled to East Asia but was stationed in Pula in today's Croatia. He collected picture postcards sent to him by many seamen from all ends of the world. Among the numerous postcards in his albums, there are three very interesting postcards from Korea. One is dated August 1906 and was sent from Seoul by a Slovenian member of the navy (the signature is unclear). The photo was made by the French photographer and linguist Charles Alévêque around 1900, and the postcard was printed in France (Shigemori Bučar 2019a). The brief handwritten message states that the sender was invited to the Korean ambassador's residence (i.e. the residence of Austria-Hungary's ambassador in Korea), probably in Seoul **[fig. 3]**.

The second postcard **[fig. 4]** was sent a few days later from Port Authur (旅順, Lüshun Port), and the photo shows the Russian battleship *Retvizan* and a few more in the bay. There is a short message in Slovenian, the date, and the signature of Morihiro Chōichi (森弘長 一), a Japanese officer who probably sat with this Slovenian person somewhere in Port Arthur (i.e. in Dalny or Dairen, 大連, now Dalian) on August 10th, 1906.

Another postcard shows the Russian cruiser *Varyag* **[fig. 5]**. It is a black-and-white photograph of the ship with captions in Russian, Ger-

**Figure 6** Photograph of Chemulp'o Bay, Kristan's album

man, and French (the name of the ship), and of interest here is the additional penciled explanation in Slovenian, "Rusi, ??? - Čemulpo-; Korejec" (Shigemori Bučar 2019a, 146‑7). It seems that these three postcards were sent by the same Slovenian member of the navy to Koršič at the same time with a few days' difference, and that this person was on the cruiser SMS *Kaiser Franz Joseph I*. According to Donko (2013, 330-1), the ship was anchored in Chemulp'o between July 29th and August 8th, and then went in and out of Dalny.4 This was only less than a year after the Russo-Japanese War, and the Japanese navy probably had much to show off to the western visitors.

#### 3.3.2 Viktor Kristan

There are four postcards from Korea in the collection of Viktor Kristan (1876‑1947). Kristan was in Korea from 1908 to 1909 on the cruiser SMS *Leopard*. In a few years, Korea went through drastic political changes, which can also be seen on the picture postcards. All four postcards, although they show Korean landscapes and people, were produced by Japanese with Japanese captions. One shows Japanese houses and boats in Chemulp'o Bay, and another one is a photo of a Korean store in a village. The other two are portraits of Kore-

4 "Dalny ein und aus, auf einem japanischen Torpedoboot Befestigungen von port Arthur besichtigt" (Donko 2013, 331).

an women wearing the typical Korean *hanbok* and photographed in a studio and later hand-tinted **[fig. 7]** (more details about these postcards are available in Shigemori Bučar 2019a). There are also additional black-and-white photos from Korea in Kristan's album. Among them are a view of Chemulp'o Bay **[fig. 6]**, a palace garden, and a photo of the "Russian fleet leaving Port Arthur during the battle" (Marinac 2017, 111). In the photograph of Chemulp'o Bay, an important landmark, James Johnstone's summer house, is visible. This house was later destroyed in the Korean War.

There is also the picture "The Korean Emperor and His Highness", a photo of Emperor Kojong 高宗 and Crown Prince Sunjong 純 宗 (1874‑1976) standing next to each other, which is often found in other photo collections of the time. Kristan probably bought these photos in the same manner as the postcards, or perhaps acquired them as gifts.

#### 3.3.3 Written Materials and Souvenirs

For the purpose of this article, diaries and memoirs of the seamen are also important. In addition to Commissary Officer Viktor Kristan, Second Mate Martin Toplak (1885-1938) was also from Slovenia, and they were both on the torpedo cruiser SMS *Leopard*. Marinac compares the writings of both5 and concludes that many of their observations are similar but, due to their difference in positions in the navy, they were acquainted with different kinds of people and circles: Toplak was lower in rank and usually stayed in the ports and observed buildings from the outside, whereas Kristan as a higher officer could visit ambassadors, influential local individuals, and government officials (Marinac 2017, 123). They both clearly observed that Koreans are different from Chinese and Japanese. They noticed the white clothes and black hats of the Korean men, or the hairstyles of those without hats, always put up in a bun. Males and females were difficult to distinguish because they wore similar clothes and the hairstyle was also the same. Both seamen had comments on the Russo-Japanese War and the hulk of the cruiser *Varyag* outside Chemulp'o Bay. Kristan, who visited the city of Seoul, also wrote about Japanese influence regarding the modernization of the city, wide streets, electricity and streetcars, and other details. He also visited Kyŏngbok Palace (景福宮) and was informed about the assassination of the Queen Min 閔妃 (1851-1895) (more details in 131-3).

5 Martin Toplak wrote his memoirs in Slovenian, whereas Viktor Kristan kept his diary in German and later wrote a travelogue in Slovenian, which he did not complete (Marinac 2017, 121).

**Chikako Shigemori Bučar Maritime, Christianity and Adventure: Slovenian Discovery of Korea**

**Figure 7** Postcard of a Korean lady, Kristan's album

**Figure 8** Postcard sent from Seoul by Alma Karlin

Various objects brought back from East Asia by members of the Austro-Hungarian Navy were in private collections for some time, but some of them were donated to museums and similar institutions, mainly by their family members. The Slovenian Ethnographic Museum obtained such objects in the 1960s from a relative of Anton Dolenc. Among them is also a covered mother-of-pearl lacquer box, obviously of Korean origin. Dolenc was the captain of the torpedo cruiser SMS *Panther* from 1909 to 1910.

#### 3.3.4 Similar Collections in Other Central European Countries

In relation to the postcards, photos and artefacts from Korea brought back in the first decades of the twentieth century mainly by members of the navy, the catalogue of the Ferenc Hopp Museum in Budapest (Fajcsák, Mecsi 2012) is a very good reference. Some of the postcards and photos presented in the catalogue are similar or almost identical to those archived in Slovenia. It is mentioned that there are photo collections of two Hungarian photographers: Ferenc Hopp, who visited Korea in 1903, and Dezső Bozóky, who traveled there in 1908 (Kardos 2012, 9). Among the photographs currently archived in Slovenia, one can identify some of their photos. The catalogue also states that there were three professional Korean photographers in the 1880s, but they were forced to leave Korea, and Japanese photographers took over the role of photo studios after the 1890s (Kardos 2012, 9-10).

**Chikako Shigemori Bučar Maritime, Christianity and Adventure: Slovenian Discovery of Korea**

**Figure 9** Reverse of the postcard in figure 7

This research may be extended to today's Croatian and Italian ports and archives because parts of these nations were formerly parts of Austria-Hungary. Some episodes may be connected to one other to form a greater picture to grasp how central Europeans of various ethnic origins perceived Korea and the Koreans.

#### 4 Travel Records by a Female Adventurer, Alma M. Karlin

Shortly after the collapse of the dual monarchy, an intrepid female adventurer from the small town of Celje in today's Slovenia embarked on a journey around the world. This section focuses on the Korean part of her journey.

Alma Maximiliana Karlin (1889-1950) was a young woman adventurer from a small Slovenian town in the newly founded Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (the former Austria-Hungarian Empire). Although both her parents were of Slovenian origin, she was raised speaking German. She was extremely interested in languages and learned multiple languages in England and Sweden before she decided to make her journey around the world, which lasted eight years, between 1919 and 1928. As a young woman without abundant funds, she relied on her own ability and language knowledge to earn her living during her journey as a writer, correspondent, and sometimes as a language teacher, translator, and embassy worker (Shigemori Bučar 2020). After staying in Japan for a little more than a year, she trave-

**Figure 10** Karlin's article in the local newspaper *Cillier Zeitung*

**Figure 11** A Korean fan in Karlin's collection

led to Korea in the early days of July 1923. This was the time when Korea was a part of Imperial Japan, more than ten years after its formal annexation. It seems that Karlin was the guest of a Japanese family in Seoul for the entire time when she was traveling. She left Japan from the southern island of Kyūshū by a boat to Pusan, on the south coast of the Korean peninsula, and then took a train to Seoul. After a brief stay in Seoul, she continued her way by train to Pyongyang. She was in the Korean peninsula area at least several weeks altogether, and then she continued her journey to Shenyang and Beijing.

In Karlin's material at the Celje Regional Museum, there are sixteen picture postcards and thirty-nine photos from Korea (Shigemori Bučar 2020). The postcards were all made in Japan with captions in Japanese and English **[figs 8-9]**. They show photos of temples and palaces, city views, and Korean people and customs. The black-and-white photographs in Karlin's material show country landscapes, farmers, handworkers, traders, funeral scenes, and so on (on the funeral photos, see Kang 2019). Both the picture postcards and photographs from

**Figure 12** Postcard of Tokwon (Tŏkwŏn) Abbey

Korea are numbered on the back with pencil markings, and on most of them there are some remarks or explanation in German. Obviously, Karlin used some of them as additional illustrations for her writings (Shigemori Bučar 2020, 213-15).

There are also three instalments of Karlin's feuilleton articles about Korea, entitled *Im Land der Morgenstille* (In the Land of the Morning Calm), published in the local newspaper in her hometown Celje, *Cillier Zeitung*, and currently archived at the National and University Library in Ljubljana. The three instalments appeared on November 18th, 22nd, and 25th, 1923 **[fig. 10]**.

Already on the train from Pusan to Seoul, Karlin saw clear differences between Koreans and Japanese in how they were dressed. The landscape was also noticeably different, rougher but also fresher than what she had seen in Japan (216).  She seemed to approve of the nudity of the Korean people. In the second instalment, Karlin described the market in Seoul and a visit to a Korean nobleman's residence. In the kitchen of a Korean house, she saw that the cooking utensils were very different from those in Japan. The third instalment is a description of Pyongyang, called Heijō at the time in Japanese. She also explained that the Koreans were making fortunes by exporting ginseng to China (Shigemori Bučar 2020, 220-1 feuilleton articles in German and English translation).

The Celje Regional Museum holds many objects brought back by Alma Karlin: among them are also two Korean fans (*taegŭksŏn* 太極 扇). These fans can be associated with Karlin's visit to the Korean nobleman's house, described in her writings in the second part of her article in *Cillier Zeitung* **[fig. 11]**.

#### 5 Christian Missionary Work in Wŏnsan

In the Cartography Department of the National and University Library in Ljubljana, there is a single picture postcard showing a blackand-white photo of the Benedictine abbey in Tokwon (Tŏkwŏn) (德源), near Wŏnsan (元山, today's North Korea). The postcard was printed in Slovenia, or by a Slovenian printing house, because the caption is in Slovenian: *Azija, Koreja: Benediktinski samostan v zimskem miru* (Asia, Korea: Benedictine abbey in winter peace). This picture postcard was not mailed, and there is no additional information regarding who possessed the card and when **[fig. 12]**.

In relation to the missionaries posted to Korea during the early twentieth century, Koidl (2020) states, based on his careful research:

The Vatican had carved up Korea amongst various missionary orders, with French missionaries responsible for the southern regions of the peninsula, Americans for the northwest, and the German Missionary Benedictines for the northeast, in addition to southeastern Manchuria. […] In 1927, they [the Germans] moved their main abbey from Seoul to the newly built headquarters in Tokwon, near Wŏnsan. (14)

At the National and University Library in Ljubljana, there are many similar missionary postcards from other parts of Asia, particularly from India and Ceylon; that is, showing local scenes in relation to missionary works with captions in Slovenian.

Further research will be conducted to obtain more information about the activities of Slovenian missionaries in order to determine whether anybody from the Slovenian region was physically in Tokwon6 in the 1930s and brought back stories and memories, or perhaps only the printing of the postcards took place.

6 For the history of the abbey, see Mahr 2009, 11‑347, among other sources.

#### 6 From Individual Contacts to the Real Discovery of a Nation

The discovery of Korea and Koreans by people from what is now Slovenia can be traced back to the middle of the eighteenth century. It is interesting that the Jesuit scholars at the Chinese court were familiar with Korea and the Koreans earlier and much better than with Japan or the Japanese. According to Koidl (2020), Hallerstein wrote the following in one of his letters in 1757 to his brother, who lived in Brussels:

And what news do we have from Japan regarding the Christian faith? None at all – although the country is very close to us, silence about it reigns everywhere, as if Japan did not even exist in the world. […] There are also Koreans arriving here each year, without bringing any news from Japan. They say that on a clear day one can see the mountains of Japan, but about Japan they know nothing – or nearer to the truth would be that they do not wish to say anything. (27)

One can say that, at least officially, Tokugawa Japan's national isolation was quite successful in the eighteenth century.

On the other hand, in the context of our recent research on objects and ideas from East Asia, contacts with China and Japan are at the foreground in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, and the volume of Chinese objects in the museums in Slovenia exceeds that of Japanese or Korean ones. The common trend in Europe was collecting so-called *chinoiserie* furniture, ceramics, and other objects. Then came the period of *Japonisme*, which was followed by the time of Austro-Hungarian maritime activities. Throughout, Korean landscapes, objects, people, and their customs have been identified as observed by specific individuals from central Europe and from the Slovenian milieu. The photographs and picture postcards are a powerful means of visual communication. Thanks to the technological development of photography, printing, and postal systems, interesting facts were conveyed from East Asia to people in central Europe. Picture postcards, particularly ones that were mailed, convey much about the time of their production and their use, and even the exact dates of correspondence between individuals.

However, the most detailed part of such discovery is usually confirmed in recorded materials by individuals in writing: letters, reports, and memoirs. The messages on the picture postcards are usually short and limited to greetings, often set phrases, and do not disclose much in terms of personal impressions or concrete experience. In the case of Alma Karlin, because she was a writer herself, although perhaps not always very objective, her personal feelings and reflections in the foreign environment are felt in her writings: she was discovering. Moreover, because her writing was also partly published, the wider public in her home country could take part in the discovery of distant places – in this case, the 'land of morning calm'.

Though chronologically later than Karlin's adventure, the Christian missionary work is still to be worked on. It is hoped that this will reveal some written materials by Slovenian individuals that were involved in this activity.

Further research in cooperation with neighboring countries and institutions, with scholars with various languages, and examining historical data will contribute to further findings. The search will also continue for more materials in Slovenia as well.

#### **Bibliography**

Shigemori Bučar, C. (2020). "Alma Karlin in Korea: Observation of the Land and Its People by an Adventurer from Slovenia". Schirmer, A. (ed.), *Central Eu‑ ropeans in Korea: Alice Schalek, Alma Karlin, Fritz Hansgirg, and Many Oth‑ ers*. Vienna: Praesens, 207-22.

Šmitek, Z. (1995). *Srečevanje z drugačnostjo: slovenska izkustva eksotike*. Radovljica: Didakta.

#### **Cultural Exchanges Between Korea and the West** Artifacts and Intangible Heritage edited by Jong-Chol An and Ariane Perrin

### When Camera Encountered 'Chosŏn Beauties'

*Kisaeng* **Photographs, Tourism, and Postcards from the 1880s to Colonial-Period Korea**

#### Yizhou Wang

Hong Kong Baptist University, China

**Abstract** This chapter contributes to an under-researched topic: *kisaeng* 妓生 (Korean female entertainers or courtesans) in early photographs of Korea associated with tourism. It examines the photographic representation of *kisaeng* from the perspectives of American travelers and Japanese colonial agents respectively. The second section focuses on the period between the 1880s and 1910 when Korea began to open up to the world. It explores the earliest photographic records of *kisaeng* through the lens of American travelers, set parallel to descriptions from their travel writings. The third section, set during the colonial period (1910-45), identifies a repertoire of visual practices associated with nation-building politics that celebrated *kisaeng* as idealized and civilized 'Chosŏn Beauties', or icons of traditional Korean culture, through the medium of photographic postcards initiated by the Japanese colonizers. It argues that such practices, relying on resources drawn from Korean entertainment culture, attempted to reshape Korea's national identity and create an imagery of a 'feminized' Korea under Japanese colonial rule.

**Keywords** Kisaeng. Korean photography. Tourism. Postcard. Nation building.

**Summary** 1 Introduction. – 2 Early *Kisaeng* Photographs by American Travelers (1880s-1910). – 2.1 Percival Lowell's 'Fragrant Iris' in Winter Landscapes (1884). – 2.2 The "Impassive" Charm: Imperial *Kisaeng* in Burton Holmes' Lens (1901) and *Travelogues* (1908). – 2.3 *Kisaeng* and Ancient Greek *Hetairai* Alike: Homer Hulbert's *The Passing of Korea* (1906). – 2.4 *Kisaeng* at Photo Studios: Frank Carpenter's Collection. – 3 Embodying and Feminizing Korea: *Kisaeng* Postcards and Japanese Tourism in Colonial Period (1910-45). – 3.1 Touring the New Land, *Kisaeng* as the Guide and Tourist Attraction. – 3.2 *Kisaeng* as the 'Chosŏn Beauty', an Icon of Traditional Korean Culture. – 3.3 Westernizing the Bodies of *Kisaeng*. – 4 Conclusion.

**Studi e ricerche 32** e-ISSN 2610-9123 | ISSN 2610-993X ISBN [ebook] 978-88-6969-717-3 | ISBN [print] 978-88-6969-718-0

**Peer review | Open access 169** Submitted 2022-11-24 | Accepted 2022-12-10 | Published 2023-08-30 © 2023 Wang | cb 4.0 **DOI 10.30687/978‑88-6969‑717-3/008**

#### 1 Introduction

Starting in the 1880s, late Chosŏn period Korea began to import 'Western' technology and culture through China and Japan. In the course of this process, photographic technology and equipment were introduced to Korea, followed by the advent of photography studios on the Korean peninsula. Meanwhile, the interplay of global tourism and colonialism fostered the making and circulation of images representing 'exotic' and 'local' cultures and knowledge. This chapter focuses on photographs of *kisaeng* 妓生 (Korean female entertainers or courtesans) that were produced in contexts related to the rise of international tourism in Korea. This research initiates an examination of photographs by individual 'Western' travelers, and builds a parallel between 'Western' perspectives and the Japanese perspective by analysing the ideas imposed on commercialized *kisaeng* photographs mass-produced on picture postcards by Japanese publishers.1 It illuminates the production, practices of staging and performativity, circulation, and consumption of these *kisaeng* images in the transcultural contexts of the late nineteenth and early twentieth century Korea. It was a period of political upheaval, ranging from the end of the Chosŏn dynasty to the Korean Empire (1897‑1910) to the Japanese colonial period (1910‑45).2 The intentions, function, visual effects, photographers, publishers, and audiences and reception are considered.

Compared to American travelers' photographs, *kisaeng* on the purchased photographs were carefully staged to represent 'Chosŏn beauties' or 'Korean beauties' and became closely bound to the concepts of 'Koreana' and Japanese empire-building. Their images emphasize themes of Korean scenic views or famous tourist sites, customs, food, entertainment culture, education, etc. To construct an ideal of femininity for Korea, *kisaeng* were often beautifully dressed up and elegantly posed with exquisite ornaments and costumes. In some images, they performed their artistic skills such as painting and calligraphy or performed music. In many photographic portraits of *kisaeng*, Western-style furniture, movable wallpaper, carpets, and

Many thanks to Burglind Jungmann for bringing me to the realm of early photography of Korea and providing feedback. Special thanks to Ariane Perrin, Ding Chennan, Sugiyama Kazuya, and two anonymous reviewers for help and critiques.

1 The *kisaeng* photographs by Western travelers have rarely been studied. The colonial-period Japanese *kisaeng* photographs have attracted scholarly attention in the recent decades (e.g. Yi 2005; Pak 2018). Pak contributed a Master's thesis on *kisaeng* portrait photographs published in newspaper and illustrated books, in which she includes a detailed literature review of research on *kisaeng* images (4-11).

2 The Japanese materials published during the Japanese colonial period in Korea are transcribed in Japanese.

costumes were mingled with traditional Korean elements, suggesting inspiration from Western sources through the 'Japanese lens'.

The production of picture postcards originated in Europe in the 1860s-70s. By 1900, postcards had become widespread due to lower costs for the reproduction process. The tourist photographic postcard soon became a popular category of postcard (Freund 1980, 99-100). Postcards likely reached Korea around 1900, and their production blossomed during the colonial period due to their promotion by Japanese institutions and companies. In early twentieth century Korea and Japan, the postcard was undoubtedly still a novel medium that provided a new way to connect with the increasingly open world.

Photographs of *kisaeng* were reproduced in large quantities by Japanese publishers on postcards. They served the increasing Japanese demand to tour and know the colonized Korea, and propaganda purposes of reshaping the identities and concepts of 'Koreana' and the expanded Japanese empire through visual media. Hyung Il Pai's (2010; 2013) discussion of Japanese tourism in colonial Korea touches on picture postcards. I suggest that *kisaeng* in photographs on early twentieth-century commercial postcards were not represented as suffering victims nor as mere sexual objects for male desire. They were strategically remodelled as stunning, elaborately or fashionably dressed, well-educated, civilized, and talented women under the new regime of colonial rule.

#### 2 Early *Kisaeng* Photographs by American Travelers (1880s-1910)

After Korea, the 'Hermit Kingdom', was forced by the Japanese Empire to open diplomatic and commercial relations with Meiji Japan and signed the Treaty of Kanghwa in 1876, King Kojong (1864‑1907) made the decision to establish diplomatic relations with the United States and signed a treaty with the Americans in 1882.3 Since that point, American travelers made trips to Korea with their cameras, during which they explored the unknown country and attempted to record its 'authentic' life and culture. Four of them – Percival Lowell, Burton Holmes, Homer Hulbert, and Frank Carpenter – arrived in Korea between the 1880s and 1910 for different reasons – diplomacy, travel, and evangelism. They all shared an interest in representing *kisaeng* through the photographic lens, either by making *kisaeng* photographs or collecting them.

3 The Treaty of Kanghwa marked the turning point when Korea ended its isolation from the world.

#### **2.1 Percival Lowell's 'Fragrant Iris' in Winter Landscapes (1884)**

Percival Lowell (1855‑1916), best known for his later career as the astronomer who mapped the 'canals' on Mars and discovered the planetoid Pluto, was significant in modern Korean history as a successful U.S.-Korea diplomat and a pioneer of Korean photography.4 As a photographer, Lowell is well known for his ground-breaking photographic portraits of King Kojong and the royal family, and for his photographs of the Korean palace. He was likely the first to take photographs of *kisaeng*, which he later included in his travel diary, *Chosön, the Land of the Morning Calm: A Sketch of Korea*, which contains award-winning photo illustrations that introduced Korea to the 'Western' world.5

Lowell was prolific during his three-month stay in Seoul, the capital of Korea, between December 1883 and March 1884. 6 Many of his photographs produced during this trip have been preserved in Lowell's photographic archive at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.7 Among the sixty-one photographs in the archive, two photographs taken in 1884 feature a lone *kisaeng* against the backdrop of winter landscapes **[figs 1‑2]**. These two photographs stand out from his oeuvre as he preferred landscapes, architecture, and crowds in most of his photography. The photograph with the forest view was used as the frontispiece for *Chosön, the Land of the Morning Calm*, suggesting his fondness for the *kisaeng* **[fig. 2]**. Both photographs depict the same *kisaeng*, nicknamed 'Fragrant Iris', riding a horse and accompanied by an old groom. They were likely photographed in winter as she wears heavy, thick clothes, and snow can be seen on the horizon and along the forest footpath. Unlike the other *kisaeng* photographs discussed in this article, Lowell places much weight on the delineation of the rural landscape, featuring either deserted land, trees, snow, and remote hills, or dense woods with a footpath. The two photographs were likely taken on the same day in late winter or early spring in 1884 during his trip to Seoul.

According to *Chosön, the Land of the Morning Calm*, Lowell met 'Fragrant Iris' at several banquets, and he was particularly fond of her. When talking about Korean women throughout his book, Low-

4 Pai (2016) has done research on the archive of Percival Lowell's photographs.

5 Lowell's *Chosön, the Land of the Morning Calm: A Sketch of Korea* (1888) provides detailed information of his travels in Korea. Earlier editions were printed in 1885 and 1886.

6 The records of Lowell's trip to Seoul can be found in his *Chosön, the Land of the Morning Calm*.

7 For Percival Lowell's photo archive at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, see https://collections.mfa.org/.

**Figure 1** Percival Lowell, *The Kisaeng 'Fragrant Iris' in a Winter Landscape*. 1884. Albumen print, 28 × 36 cm. Photograph. © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

**Figure 2** Percival Lowell, *The Kisaeng 'Fragrant Iris' in a Wood*. 1884. Photograph, as the frontispiece of *Chosön, the Land of the Morning Calm: A Sketch of Korea* (Boston: Ticknor and Company, 1888)

ell considered *kisaeng* (he mostly used the Japanese term *geisha*) a social class different from other Korean women who were 'invisible' on several different levels. This observation of the *kisaeng* unique status and visibility in Korean society, and Lowell's personal interest in the *kisaeng* 'Fragrant Iris', might have motivated him to capture her twice.

#### **2.2 The "Impassive" Charm: Imperial** *Kisaeng* **in Burton Holmes' Lens (1901) and** *Travelogues* **(1908)**

Burton Holmes (1870‑1958), born in Chicago, was a celebrated American traveler, photographer, lecturer, and film producer. His camera preserved rare portrayals of government *kisaeng* in the Korean imperial palace, which have not been studied yet. In the late-nineteenth and early-twentieth century, travel lectures illustrated with photography were extremely popular in the United States. Magic lantern slides were widely used to accompany illustrated lectures where speakers described foreign lands to public audiences (Peterson 2013, 23). Emerging from this popular medium, film technology led to the development of commercial travelogue films as another popular entertainment form (24). Holmes was a pioneer among his American contemporaries in the fields of both photographic travel lectures and travelogue films. When delivering his lecture series that toured the United States between the 1890s and the 1950s, he incorporated photographs and film clips that he made during his travels worldwide (24).

Holmes' travels included one trip to Seoul in 1901, during which he not only documented Korea through the medium of photography but also made the earliest film that recorded people's lives in Seoul during the short-lived period of the Korean Empire (1897‑1910).8 Through Holmes' lens, *kisaeng* played a notable role in both media. In addition, Holmes (1910; 1908) included descriptions of *kisaeng* in the tenth volume of his travelogue series, the *Burton Holmes Travelogues* (1901 first edition titled *The Burton Holmes Lectures*).9

Like Lowell, Holmes had a chance to meet the emperor Kojong at the imperial palace in Seoul. It is particularly remarkable that Holmes received an invitation to see and take pictures of government *kisaeng* in the royal palace (107‑10). Noted in his *Travelogues*, Holmes observed a large troupe of more than eighty *kisaeng* serving the court, who constantly waited for a summons to dance in front of the emperor (107‑8). Despite the lack of supplementary information about the content of Holmes' monochrome silent film footage of Ko-

8 For the full version of Burton Holmes' film footage about Korea (length: 5′12″), see https://www.travelfilmarchive.com/item.php?id=13393&clip=n&num=10&startrow =0&keywords=korea. The Burton Holmes Collection at UCLA contains more than 16,000 hand-painted glass lantern slides produced between 1887 and 1937 for Holmes' illustrated travel lectures. For information on the Burton Holmes Digital Archive, see https://humtech.ucla.edu/project/burton-holmes-digital-archive.

9 Holmes reorganized the contents of his travel lectures and transferred them into the ten published volumes of the *Burton Holmes Travelogues*. In the tenth volume of his *Travelogue*s about Korea, Holmes used different terms, including 'dancing girls', 'gesang', 'coryphée', and 'corps-de-ballet' to refer to *kisaeng* or a *kisaeng* troupe.

**Figure 3ab** Burton Holmes, *Official Kisaeng at the Palace*. 1901. Seoul, Korea. Two shots from the 35 mm film footage about Korea. The Travel Film Archive

rea, I postulate that the one-minute clip (from 3′30″ to 4′36″), which features dancing girls, was a rare encounter made fortuitously when the *kisaeng* were practising in the palace. At the beginning of the clip, Holmes shows the faces of several young *kisaeng* **[fig. 3a]**, which parallels the focus on *kisaeng*'s faces in his textual descriptions. He writes that they "are sometimes pretty", "with faces powdered and made up" (108). The rest of the clip showed the *kisaeng* dancing with musical accompaniment from the male musicians sitting in the back **[fig. 3b]**. The ease of the facial expressions and movements of the *kisaeng* reveals that when Holmes was holding his camera and shooting the scene, they were merely practising or warming up rather than performing on a formal occasion. Meanwhile, corresponding to Holmes's observation in the *Travelogues* that *kisaeng* were "always immaculately dressed" (108), most of the *kisaeng* in the footage were dressed in white or light-coloured *hanbok* with their hair neatly bound up in a similar style.

In addition to the film clip, Holmes' photographs of *kisaeng* on hand-painted glass lantern slides offer more visual details about *kisaeng*'s bodies, facial expressions, dresses, and accessories, and their living and working spaces. Figure 4 features one *kisaeng* in

**Figure 4** Burton Holmes, *A Kisaeng Seated with a Folding Fan*. 1901. Hand-painted 3.5 × 4 inches glass lantern slide. © Burton Holmes Digital Archive, UCLA

a white top and grey skirt, seated on a floral-patterned carpet and resting her right hand, which holds a green folded fan with tassels, on her knee. She calmly looks directly into the camera, which suggests her awareness of Holmes and the fact that she was being captured by the camera **[fig. 4]**. She was surrounded by other figures. To her right, another seated figure pinching a similar green folded fan with her hands is partially visible. They were probably both at dancing practice. This photograph is a rare close-up documentary image of the interior space for *kisaeng*'s regular practice, possibly at court.

More details of *kisaeng*'s space are portrayed in figure 5 **[fig. 5]**. This photograph depicts a group of six young *kisaeng* sitting in a room decorated with screen panels showing bird-and-flower paintings, figure paintings, and calligraphy in the Chinese style. The interior setting suggests the *kisaeng*'s artistic and literary cultivation and the refinement of their daily lives. Five of them stare into the camera, while none of the six girls smile or express any excitement on their placid faces. Holmes' critical commentary on the palace *kisaeng* in the *Travelogues* coincided with such visual representations in his photographs. He was disappointed by the "calm-faced" or "quite expressionless" *kisaeng*, or "impassive coryphées", who danced to the "dull music", "monotonous, stiff, and automatic in their posturing", although he noted the Korean emperor's unceasing interest in watching their performance (Holmes 1908, 108-9, 112). In contrast to the calmness of the *kisaeng* represented in the glass lantern slides, Holmes' film footage contains more vivid expressions and motions. Thus, the expressionlessness of *kisaeng* captured in the still photographs might have, to a large extent, reflect-

**Figure 5** Burton Holmes, *Kisaeng Seated in a Room with Bird-and-Flower Paintings and Calligraphy*. 1901. Hand-painted 3.5 × 4 inches glass lantern slide. © Burton Holmes Digital Archive, UCLA

ed Holmes' personal perceptions and feelings about *kisaeng*. From the perspective of using visual materials as historical resources, it is worth noting that Holmes provided valuable first-hand visual resources that documented the lives and performances of *kisaeng* at the court in 1901 Seoul before the government *kisaeng* (*kwan'gi*  官妓) system was officially banned in 1908.10 These works represent a unique viewpoint visualizing *kisaeng* in everyday life with more randomness and spontaneity. They are distinct from the numerous staged or highly performative photographs of *kisaeng* (often smiling) produced in photography studios or outdoor settings that were printed as postcards and other illustrated products by Japanese publishers.

#### **2.3** *Kisaeng* **and Ancient Greek** *Hetairai* **Alike: Homer Hulbert's** *The Passing of Korea* **(1906)**

Homer B. Hulbert (1863‑1949) was an American missionary, journalist, historian, and educator who resided in Korea from 1886 until he was forced to leave by the Japanese resident-general in 1907. He lived through the Japanese establishment of a protectorate over Korea in 1905 and the Protectorate period (1905-10). He was also known for his political activities, advocating for Korean independence from Japanese imperial rule (Schmid 2010, 7‑23). His 600-page book, *The*

10 Park (2015) has done a comprehensive historical study on government *kisaeng* in late Chosŏn Korea.

*Passing of Korea* (1906), presents his extensive experiences in Korea, and it has been argued as a critique of the Japanese colonial efforts in Korea. In addition to the book's main intention to criticize Japanese colonization, it also attempted to portray to the 'outside' world an 'authentic' view of a distinctive Korean culture and society as seen through Hulbert's eyes. I suggest that the illustration of the *kisaeng* helped to serve this purpose.

In the second chapter, "The People", from *The Passing of Korea*, Hulbert included a studio photograph of a government *kisaeng*  dressed in a refined costume for performance and standing in a dancing pose with her back facing the viewer **[fig. 6]**. To accompany the photograph, Hulbert wrote a paragraph articulating his personal thoughts about Korean *kisaeng*. To elucidate these female social roles from a culture with which he was unfamiliar, Hulbert's approach was to search for more familiar equivalent examples to compare and contrast. He linked Korean *kisaeng* to ancient Greek courtesans or high-class prostitutes, called *hetairai* or *hetaira*, literally 'female companion' (Glazebrook 2020).11 He asserts, though without further elaboration, that "the condition of Korea to-day [today] as regards the relations of the sexes is much like that of ancient Greece in the days of Pericles"12 and "there is much similarity between the *kisang* [*kisaeng*] (dancing-girl) of Korea and the *hetairai* of Greece" (Hulbert 1906, 41). *Hetairai* were known to accompany men's drinking parties as a means to display status, and they were often depicted on ancient Greek vases and drinking cups.

In contrast, Hulbert maintains that "the *geisha* of Japan [is] the exact counterpart of the *kisang* [*kisaeng*] of Korea" (41). The reasons are not explained clearly, but he might have intended to suggest that there was much more freedom in sexual relations among Korean *kisaeng* than among Japanese *geishas*. 13 At the beginning of the same paragraph, Hulbert stated:

As for morality in its narrow sense, the Koreans allow themselves great latitude. There is no word for home in their language, and much of the meaning which that word connotes is lost to them. (41)

Hulbert seemed to regard Korea as a country with fewer moral restrictions. Furthermore, he showed sympathy for *kisaeng* girls who

11 *Hetairai* is an ancient Greek term and euphemism, and it refers to those who were known to have possessed outstanding physical beauty, cultural accomplishments, and, importantly, greater freedom than married women bound within the familial structure.

12 Pericles (c. 495-429 BC) was a powerful Athenian statesman and general in ancient Greece around the fifth century BC who affixed a legendary status to *hetairai*.

13 Taylor Atkins (2010, 175‑84) includes a comparison between Korean *kisaeng* and Japanese *geisha* with discussion on the Japanese perception of *kisaeng*.

belonged to the "degraded class", although he positioned himself as a member of the "most enlightened countries", a category to which Korea did not belong (41). In the context of the Japanese protectorate over Korea, by associating *kisaeng* with the tradition of *hetairai* rather than *geishas*, Hulbert implied that Korea was a country with a long history and refined culture comparable to the ancient civilization of Greece.

#### **2.4** *Kisaeng* **at Photo Studios: Frank Carpenter's Collection**

The photograph of a government *kisaeng* published in Hulbert's *The Passing of Korea* was likely made in a photography studio before or during 1901. Studio photographs featuring *kisaeng* in similar exquisite attire and ornaments can be found in the collections of other American travelers, for example, Frank G. Carpenter (1855-1924). Carpenter, born in Mansfield, Ohio, was an American journalist, photographer, world traveler, travel writer, and geography writer and lecturer. He travelled to Korea twice (as well as China and Japan) in 1894 and 1908 as part of his first and second world journeys (Swanson, Friend 2010). After that, Carpenter (1926) published one travelogue about Korea and Japan. As a journalist, Carpenter's extensive world travels (including Europe, Asia, Africa, and North, Central, and South America) were mainly financed by writing assignments from newspapers, magazines, and presses.14 As such, his travelogues reached a wide readership. His publications on his travels, including syndicated publications, were in wider circulation than the accounts produced by other 'Western' travelers in Korea.

During his world travels, he took many photographs, but he also gathered photographs from the countries to which he travelled. In his collection of over 15,000 photographs, there is a group of photographs of Korea (currently 46 digitalized files) that cover a wide range of subjects including the Korean emperor/empress, street scenes, Korean men/women, Japanese generals in Korea, etc.15 In contrast to Lowell's enthusiasm for the Korean landscape, most of Carpenter's collected photographs depict the Korean people, among which *kisaeng* photographs can be found.

Two monochrome photographs from Carpenter's collection portray the same government *kisaeng* dressing up in a studio setting and posing **[figs 7‑8]**. Both photographs show the shared interior settings, including the same carpet and pot of plants, probably from a photography studio in Korea. The background of the *kisaeng* in profile features a long curtain in the Western style and pattern **[fig. 7]**, while the screen depicting a bookshelf holding thread-bound books and vessels was set behind the *kisaeng* showing her back in a standing pose **[fig. 8]**. Moreover, the decorative headdress, the carefully prepared hairstyles (though slightly different), the refined embroidery on the costume for performance with extended sleeves, the dangling ornaments, and the physical beauty of the young *kisaeng* are highlighted in black and white contrast with rich, layered tones.

A similar style of dress, posture (back to the audience), and interior setting is shared by Hulbert's *kisaeng* photograph **[fig. 6]**. All contribute to our knowledge about the early photographs of *kisaeng* that were produced or circulated between 1894 and 1908, just before and at the start of the Japanese occupation. They also shed light on the subject matters and settings of the early Korean photography studios. Between the 1880s and 1910, especially in the period after the First Sino-Japanese War (1894-95), entrepreneurs from Japan's ports and commercial centres, e.g. Yokohama, established and dominated the

14 For examples, the newspaper *Cleveland Leader* (for which Carpenter had a regular column entitled 'Carp's Washington'), the *Boston Globe*, the American Press Association, the *New York World*, *Cosmopolitan Magazine*.

15 They were donated to the Library of Congress, Washington, D.C. For the online database of the Carpenter Collection, seehttps://www.loc.gov/pictures/collection/ffcarp.

**Yizhou Wang When Camera Encountered 'Chosŏn Beauties'**

**Figure 7** Anonymous, *A Seated Government Kisaeng*. c. 1894 or 1908. Black and white photographic print. © Frank and Frances Carpenter Collection, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C.

**Figure 8** Anonymous, *A Standing Government Kisaeng*. c. 1894 or 1908. Black and white photographic print. © Frank and Frances Carpenter Collection, Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division, Washington, D.C.

photo studio and printing business in Korea (Lee 2014). It was only in 1907 that the first photo studio, likely run by Koreans, Ch'ŏnyŏndang Photo Studio 天然當, opened, marking a turning point in the history of Korean photo studios and photography. A rapid increase in Korean-run photo studios soon followed (Lee 2014). *Kisaeng* were indeed 'public women' in Chŏson society who could be visible in public. They were not required to cover their heads and bodies with long clothing as was the case for gentry women. As both Hulbert's and Carpenter's *kisaeng* photographs show, the staged settings in photo studios rather than on the street or in an open-air background indicate that they likely were photographed in Japanese-run photo studios and sold on the market, probably targeting both 'Western' and Japanese travelers in Korea. They were printed on a higher quality paper stock than the one used for the later Japanese postcards from the colonial period. It suggests a higher price point than the affordable mass-produced picture postcards. Perhaps because they were products of the Japanese-run photo studios, the government *kisaeng* photographs from the collections of Hulbert and Carpenter were later reproduced by Japanese publishers on picture postcards in the colonial era **[figs 9‑10]**.

#### 3 Embodying and Feminizing Korea: *Kisaeng* Postcards and Japanese Tourism in Colonial Period (1910-45)

During Korea's colonial period, numerous postcards of *kisaeng* photographs were produced by Japanese publishers. Based on the texts written on extant colonial-period postcards from the available databases, they mainly targeted Japanese residents in Korea and Japan for the communication of quotidian and trivial matters.16 The publishers of the *kisaeng* photo postcards in colonial-period Korea were many and varied, and they included their names in Japanese and sometimes English on the postcards. Among them, the government institutions such as Chosen [Chosŏn] Branch of Japanese Tourist Bureau (*Mantetsu Keijō kanrikyoku* 満鉄京城管理局) and The Railway Bureau of the Government-General of Chosen [Chosŏn] (*Chōsen Sōtokufu Tetsudōkyoku* 朝鮮総督府鉄道局) facilitated production. Besides the names of publishing houses, business enterprises and photo studios either from Japan or Korea, e.g. Tokyo Publishing Press (*Tōkyō Insatsu Kabushikigaisha* 東京印刷株式会社), Taisho, Hinde-Shoko Seoul Korea (*Keijō Hinode Shōkō* 京城日之出商行), Tanida, Wakizaka Shoten Heijio [Pyongyang] (*Heijō Wakizaka Shashimbu* 平壌脇坂写真部), K. Iwata, Seoul, Corea [Korea] (Kankoku Keijō Iwata Shashinkan 韓 国京城岩田写真館), and Shoseido 東京松声堂, appeared on the postcards as the publishers. This section analyses the design of the colonial-period *kisaeng* postcards, and it explores the imposed idea connecting *kisaeng* images with nation-building.

#### **3.1 Touring the New Land,** *Kisaeng* **as the Guide and Tourist Attraction**

After Japan became the mandated protector of Korea and then colonized it, Japanese authorities deployed visual tools to promote tourism in their new territory. *Kisaeng* were selected as the imagined 'guide'

16 For a glimpse into the quantitative data, the collection database of the National Museum of Korea includes roughly eight hundred photo postcards with the *kisaeng* subject. See http://www.emuseum.go.kr/. The digital Korean Photo Postcard Database from the International Research Center for Japanese Studies in Kyoto, Japan contains about 858 postcards with *kisaeng*, many of which were used and carry a stamped postdate and hand-written texts. See https://kutsukake.nichibun.ac.jp/CHO/index.html?page=1. The database for the North American project *Photo Postcard Image Collection of Colonial Korea* holds a massive collection of 8,000 postcards of colonial Korea, which also contains *kisaeng* photo postcards. This database is only available on site at University of Chicago, Columbia University, Harvard University, University of Michigan, Duke University, University of Toronto, and UCLA. The author had a chance to examine the database at the University of Chicago Library. For more information, see https://ceas.uchicago.edu/news/8000-images-colonial-korea-captured-postcard-collection.

**Figure 9** Anonymous, *A Government Kisaeng in Dancing Posturing*. Colonial period, Korea. Photography postcard. Collection of Yamamoto Shunsuke, Kyoto. © International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan

**Figure 10** Anonymous, *A Government Kisaeng Dressed Up*. Colonial period, Korea. Photography postcard. Collection of Yamamoto Shunsuke, Kyoto. © International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan

and a tourist attraction for actual and potential Japanese tourists. When opening a Korean railway map published by the Railway Bureau of the Government-General of Chosen [Chosŏn], the image of a beautiful *kisaeng* might have appeared as an alluring welcome.17 Postcards, as an affordable means of attracting tourists, were manufactured to show Japanese the tourist attractions to be found in their Korean colony. It was a common practice to combine *kisaeng* photographs and scenic views of Korea. Titles such as *A Hundred Views of Keijo [Seoul]*  (*Keijō Hyakkei* 京城百景) and *The Fifty Scenic Views of Heijo [Pyongyang]* (*Heijō Gojikkei* 平壤五十景) were printed on *kisaeng* picture postcards, establishing *kisaeng* in the role of introducing and representing Korea. A beloved tourist experience was a boat tour along the Taedong River (Taedonggang 大同江) in Pyongyang accompanied by *kisaeng* and their entertainment service. Some postcards present a mixture of *kisaeng*, boat tours, and Japanese tourists. A number of other postcards

17 Such maps can be found in the online database of the International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan.

**Figure 11** Anonymous, *Kisaeng with the Taedong River and the Peony Platform*. Colonial period, Korea. Photography postcard. Collection of Yamamoto Shunsuke, Kyoto. © International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan

merge three elements – *kisaeng*, the Taedong River, and the nearby tourist site, Peony Platform – in a single postcard. In figure 11, eleven *kisaeng*, dressed up and arranged on a riverbank surrounded by rocks, have the Taedong River and the Peony Platform as their background **[fig. 11]**. The combination creates an unnatural and intentional performance. These postcards were sold to Japanese tourists as souvenirs to be collected or posted to Japan (Pai 2010). Through the circulation of these postcards, the imagery of *kisaeng* became bound up with important Korean natural and cultural sites, and thus the land and national identity of Korea.

Furthermore, *kisaeng* postcards served to manipulate the knowledge of famous sites and tourist attractions in colonial Korea. The *kisaeng* school was a conspicuous theme in photo postcards as evidenced by its frequent appearance. The *kisaeng* became one of the tourist attractions in Korea for Japanese tourists. It is striking that, as indicated by the Japanese and English texts on the postcards, the *kisaeng* school was regarded as a famous site of Pyongyang. For instance, on the postcard in figure 12 **[fig. 12]**, the upper left corner reads, "View of the Famous Place, Heijō [Pyongyang]" (*Heijō Meishō* 平壤名勝). Its delineation emphasizes the entrance gate and *kisaeng* of the *kisaeng* school at Pyongyang. Moreover, the postcards combining *kisaeng* images with a symbolic site representing Japanese imperial power disclose the intention to implant Japanese identity onto a map of the Korean land.

**Figure 12** Anonymous, *The Kisaeng School*. Colonial period, Korea. Photography postcard. Collection of Yamamoto Shunsuke, Kyoto. © International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan

For example, Chōsen Jingū (built in 1925), a Shinto shrine in Seoul for worshipping the Japanese emperor Meiji Tennō that was built in 1925 during the Japanese occupation, was represented in *kisaeng* postcards. Figure 13 combines a photograph of Chōsen Jingū and a photograph of a young *kisaeng* in *hanbok* surrounded by Korean drums **[fig. 13]**. Such a union of two originally unconnected subjects blurred the boundaries between place and the human figure, Japan and Korea, new and old. By establishing *kisaeng* as tour guides and a tourist attraction of colonial Korea, the Japanese transformed the subordinated female bodies of *kisaeng* into embodiments of their Korean colony.

#### **3.2** *Kisaeng* **as the 'Chosŏn Beauty', an Icon of Traditional Korean Culture**

Colonial-period Japanese postcards almost always contained certain Japanese terms or *kanji* to explain the main themes of the pictures or scenes printed on them. The picture postcards with *kisaeng* photographs often bear the term for *kisaeng*, including "The *Kisaeng*" 妓生, "The Official *Kisaeng*" 官妓, "The Chosŏn Beauty" (*Chōsen Bijin* 朝鮮美人), and "The Korean Beauty" (*Kankoku Bijin* 韓 國美人). The Korean government's courtesan system was reorganized into a system of licensed prostitution after its official abolition

**Yizhou Wang When Camera Encountered 'Chosŏn Beauties'**

**Figure 13** Anonymous, *Chōsen Jingū and a Kisaeng with Drums*. Colonial period, Korea. Photography postcard. Collection of Yamamoto Shunsuke, Kyoto. © International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan

in 1908. Although *kisaeng* belonged to the category of prostitutes, they were represented and considered to be decent and beautiful women who were not obscenely depicted on Japanese postcards. They were portrayed either individually or in a group. Scenes of their interactions with male clients were seldom shown (although there are exceptions). I argue that *kisaeng*, through their visual representation on Japanese picture postcards, were elevated into icons of traditional Korean culture during the colonial period.

*Kisaeng* on Japanese picture postcards were often staged to show their mastery of refined elite skills in calligraphy, poetry, ink painting, music, etc. The legacy of Korean elite culture from the Chosŏn dynasty was a dominant component in *kisaeng* photographs on Japanese postcards, and often labelled and categorized as "Customs of Chosen [Chosŏn]" (*Chōsen Fūzoku* 朝鮮風俗). Figure 14 focuses on a group of young *kisaeng* learning classical ink painting of the conventional 'gentleman' subject of plants, e.g. orchids and bamboo, at the *kisaeng* school in Pyongyang, under the instruction of a man, perhaps Japanese **[fig. 14]**. Likewise, their expertise in playing musical instruments was another merit in representations of *kisaeng* as 'Chosŏn beauties'.

**Figure 14** Anonymous, *The Training of Painting at Kisaeng School*, *Pyongyang*. Colonial period, Korea. Photography postcard. Busan City Museum © National Museum of Korea

Besides their expertise in Chosŏn elite culture signified by calligraphy, painting, and traditional musical instruments, Korean cuisine as representative of Korean culture and tradition was also combined with the imagery of *kisaeng* on postcards with titles such as *The Famous Cuisine of Chosen [Chosŏn]* (*Chōsen Meibutsu Ryōri* 朝鮮名物料 理). This category of *kisaeng* postcards adds layers of olfactory and gustatory sensation and renders these *kisaeng* images more participatory and closer to daily life. Tasting local and 'authentic' food, after all, is an essential part of modern tourism. The photo postcard in figure 15 shows three *kisaeng* in *hanbok* sitting around a table covered with a tablecloth set with a potted plant **[fig. 15]**. They are all smiling and the one on the left is touching the leaves of the plant, probably orchids, while trying to smell it. The English text on the postcard specifies that the *kisaeng* were "famous singers" and they were "smelling the fragrance of flowers" at "a well-known Korean restaurant" in Seoul. The accompanying Japanese text gives the name of the Korean restaurant as "Garden of the *Dao* of Food, Seoul, Chosen [Chosŏn]" (*Chōsen Keijō Shokudōen* 朝鮮京城食道園). Meanwhile, a stamp of the restaurant appears on the surface of the *kisaeng* photograph. Another postcard promoting the same restaurant features a group of *kisaeng* performing a sword dance at the restaurant dressed in costumes and hats. The sword dance was a traditional performance during the Chosŏn dynasty, especially by government *kisaeng*, and can be found in earlier Chosŏn genre paintings.

#### **Figure 15**

Anonymous, *Kisaeng at a Korean Restaurant*. Colonial period, Korea. Photography postcard.Collection of Yamamoto Shunsuke, Kyoto. © International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan

#### **3.3 Westernizing the Bodies of** *Kisaeng*

The colonial period under Japanese rule was a period of modernization, although Koreans' agency was limited and ambiguous under colonial rule. Picture postcards became a visual platform for representing and facilitating the process of colonial modernization and made it accessible to wide audiences in Korea, Japan, and beyond. 'Western' identity was in demand so that Japan could stand out from other Asian countries as a 'modernized' and superior empire. This concern was also passed on to its colonies, including Korea, and it was reflected in the colonial-period visual culture. The feminine and obedient bodies of *kisaeng*, mingling the Korean cultural traditions and the 'Western' dress, fashion, art deco, etc., were chosen to visually perform both coloniality and modernity on the mass-produced picture postcards for public purchase and extended transregional circulation along with the expansion of Japanese tourism in colonial Korea.

**Figure 16** Anonymous, *A Kisaeng Resting on a Bed*. Colonial period, Korea. Photography postcard. Busan City Museum. © National Museum of Korea

Within the framed pictorial space on portable postcards, *kisaeng*  were not only established as icons of traditional Korean culture but also staged to embrace and assimilate 'Western' elements through the objects surrounding and on their bodies.

At a basic level, 'Western' elements appeared in the background and settings that framed the *kisaeng* figures. The photo postcard in figure 16 depicts a *kisaeng* resting on a bed in her inner chamber. The room is decorated with a mirror, a Western-style clock, and a framed oil painting hanging on the wall **[fig. 16]**. To be photographed by the imported camera was indeed a 'modern' gesture. Most remarkably, the photographer, likely a Japanese man in a Western-style suit, and his large camera mounted on the tripod are visible in the mirror. The image captures a rare moment representing the *kisaeng*, the photographer, and the camera together in one photograph.

The next step was to 'Westernize' the body by altering costume and hairstyle. Clothing has a performative quality and social power to convey symbolic meanings and construct identities associated with gender, class/social status, ethnicity/nationality, modernity, etc. Jina E. Kim (2019, 150) indicates that 'Western' clothes became popular in Korea during the 1930s and 1940s, especially in the public sphere. Western-style clothing and accessories were incorporated into the body of *kisaeng* as part of their representations on postcards. *Kisaeng* in the early-colonial-era photographs mostly wore the traditional Korean *hanbok*. Yet, there was an increasing interest in representing *kisaeng* in Western-style costumes, or in a mixture of

#### **Figure 17**

Anonymous, *A Kisaeng in Western-Style Suit Holding an Umbrella*. Colonial period, Korea. Stamped date (on its backside): 10 May 1932. Photography postcard, 10.8 × 8.2 cm. Collection of Yamamoto Shunsuke, Kyoto. © International Research Centre for Japanese Studies, Kyoto, Japan

Western-style attire and Korean *hanbok*. *Kisaeng* on postcards with stamped dates in the 1900s already incorporated certain 'Western' elements, e.g. Western-style hats, in their costumes. It implies that *kisaeng* might have led the embrace of Western-style clothing and hairstyles, at least on the mass-produced postcards. On a picture postcard with the stamped date May 10, 1932 **[fig. 17]**, the *kisaeng* eschewed Korean dress for Western-style clothes, hairstyle, and accessories from top to bottom: a high-crowned and wide-brimmed hat, curled hair, one-piece dress decorated with a tie, and a laced umbrella.18 It is also worth noting that in the numerous widely-circulated *kisaeng* photographs, Japanese producers did not seek to replace traditional Korean attire with the Japanese *kimono* (though some *kisaeng* wore the *kimono*) but represent traditional Korean dress or the new Western style.

18 Although there is no text on the postcard indicating that she is a *kisaeng*, her face is identical to the renowned *kisaeng* Jang Yŏn-hong 장연홍 張蓮紅 (1911-?) who was often featured and acknowledged on Japanese *kisaeng* postcards.

#### 4 Conclusion

This chapter has examined *kisaeng* photographs associated with both 'Western' and Japanese tourism between the 1880s and 1945. In a first period from the 1880s to 1910, when 'Western' travelers started to arrive in the newly open Korea with their cameras, four American travelers, for diplomatic, touristic, or evangelistic purposes, photographed *kisaeng* or collected *kisaeng* photographs available on the market, which they circulated to the outside world. As the 'invisibility' of Korean women was often noted in travelogues about Korea written by 'Western' travelers in this period, these photographs contributed to the early knowledge and visual imagery of *kisaeng* and Korean women as counterparts to the 'non-beings' and 'non-status' arguments found in their texts.

Second, during the Japanese colonial period (1910-45), a large quantity of postcards featuring photographs of *kisaeng* or the combination of *kisaeng* and scenic views were continuously produced by Japanese institutions and publishers to promote Japanese tourism in their new colony. At the same time, *kisaeng*, instead of being represented as debased low-class women, were carefully staged as 'Chosŏn Beauties' who embodied both the refined elite culture and heritage of Chosŏn Korea and the negotiated modernization in fashion, education, and lifestyle under the colonial domination. It was a means of visual propaganda to create colonial intimacy and to feminize and romanticize Korea. The analysis of the *kisaeng* picture postcards reveals the complexity of Japanese colonial visual politics in Korea. It illuminates how the colonized Other could have been exoticized and Orientalized on the bodily and psychical levels within the Orient, while it also uncovers the ambivalent agency of the colonized and their visual representation in the case of those Korean women who entertained known as *kisaeng*.

The term in this essay's title, 'Chosŏn Beauties', is used to denote *kisaeng* as the subjects in photographs from the 1880s to the end of the colonial period. Through the circulation of *kisaeng* photographs and postcards, the imagery of *kisaeng* became the beautiful and decent public embodiment of traditional Korean culture and customs drawn from the refined elite culture of the Chosŏn past. The photographs of *kisaeng* expressed nostalgic inquiry while, especially in the colonial period, they also became representations of modernity exemplified by Western-style interiors, costumes, hairstyles, etc. Two aspects remain for further exploration: the first is to compare *kisaeng* images with Meiji-period Japanese souvenir photographs representing *geishas*, while the other is to analyse the text-image relationship through a close reading of the hand-written Japanese texts on *kisaeng* picture postcards.

#### **Bibliography**

**Cultural Exchanges Between Korea and the West** Artifacts and Intangible Heritage edited by Jong-Chol An and Ariane Perrin

## Mapping the Earth and Ordering the Heavens

**The Circulation and Transformation of Jesuit World Maps and Star Charts on a Screen in the Late Chosŏn Dynasty**

#### Seo Yoonjung

Myongji University, Seoul, Korea

**Abstract** This chapter delves into the exchange of Western pictorial motifs and techniques in copies of world maps and astronomical charts in the eighteenth century of the Chosŏn dynasty. Modeled after Sino-European world maps and star charts by Jesuit priests, these Korean works attest to the profound exchange of cartographic and astronomical knowledge between China and Korea. The influence of Jesuit world maps and astronomical charts not only spurred scientific advancements within Chosŏn society but also facilitated the connection of Chosŏn to the broader global network of knowledge and information.

**Keywords** Jesuits. World map. Star chart. Screen. Chosŏn dynasty.

**Summary** 1 Introduction. – 2 Interactions Between Korean Envoys and Jesuits Missionaries in China. – 3 Figured Manuscript Copies of the Jesuit's World Maps. – 4 Star Charts on Screens. – 5 Conclusion.

#### 1 Introduction

This chapter explores the exchange of Western pictorial motifs and techniques in copies of world maps and astronomical charts in the eighteenth century of the Chosŏn dynasty. Modeled after Sino-European world maps and star charts by Jesuit priests – including Matteo

**Studi e ricerche 32** e-ISSN 2610-9123 | ISSN 2610-993X ISBN [ebook] 978-88-6969-717-3 | ISBN [print] 978-88-6969-718-0

**Peer review | Open access 193** Submitted 2022-09-05 | Accepted 2023-03-06 | Published 2023-08-30 © 2023 Yoonjung | cb 4.0 **DOI 10.30687/978‑88-6969‑717-3/009**

Ricci (1552‑1610), Ferdinand Verbiest (1623‑88), and Ignatius Kögler (1680‑1746) – these Korean works attest to the exchange of cartographic and astronomical knowledge between China and the Korea. The Jesuits' materials that were exported to Korea and their reproductions serve as useful resources for discussing changes in the Sino-centric worldview and Confucian ideologies shared by Chosŏn intellectuals. In addition, this chapter will demonstrate how Western knowledge was transmitted to the Chosŏn, how foreign pictorial images were understood and modified, and how this newly imported techniques, artworks and ideas affected Koreans' self-identification and worldview.

Comparing diverse visual and textual sources from China and Europe, the discussion will then expand to scrutinize the transformation of pictorial motifs, the advancement of geographical and astronomical knowledge from the standpoint of cultural exchange between the East and the West, and Chosŏn Koreans' response to the West within the socio-cultural context. Lastly, this chapter delves into not only the scientific accuracy of the reproductions but also the political context surrounding the royal patronage of the reproduction, the symbolic meaning of map- and calendar-making in Confucian society, and the characteristics of screens as royal regalia. Pictorial maps on folding screens offer valuable opportunities for examining the ritual roles that screen paintings played in and the transformation or domestication of foreign images and technologies have occurred in Chosŏn society. Whereas the Sino-European maps and star charts were mainly made to be hung on the walls or printed in books in China, extant Chosŏn versions were produced on large-scale hand-colored folding screens. This requires a thorough analysis of the multiple functions and significance of the screen format specific to the late Chosŏn court, which offers insights into the Chosŏn Koreans' response to 'global encounters'.

#### 2 Interactions Between Korean Envoys and Jesuits Missionaries in China

Although Korea had not established direct contact with the Jesuit missionaries in the late Chosŏn period, the world maps and the astronomical ideas of the West flowed into Korea mainly through diplomatic missions returning from Beijing (Shin 2006; Lim 2016b). The Chosŏn kingdom played the role of faithful tributary to the Ming and Qing dynasties until 1895. Ming emperor was regarded as the 'Son of Heaven' in the Sino-centric world, and the Chosŏn paid respect to China by adopting its ritual protocols and sending tributary embassies regularly. This marked the start of Korea's entry into the realm of Confucian civilization through the noble culture of the Ming. After the Manchu's military campaigns to the Chosŏn in 1627 and 1636 and the subsequent demise of the Ming empire, Korea transferred its formal tributary obligations from the Ming to the Qing in 1637. Although the Chosŏn government was forced to accept Qing suzerainty, the court and the ruling elites of Korea – who considered the Ming as the legitimate successor of the culture of the 'Middle Kingdom' and the Qing as the barbarians who threatened the harmonious orders of the Confucian civilization – expressed hostility toward the new Manchu regime and claimed themselves to be the last bastion of true Confucian civilization (Haboush 1999). During the Qing dynasty, the Chosŏn dispatched four tributary embassies to the Qing annually to attend the official rituals of the Qing court on the occasions of the three junctures and annual tribute, respectively. Each envoy included thirty-five official envoys and two to three hundred workers.1

During such diplomatic visits, a series of gift exchanges took place. In addition to the official gift exchange between the Chinese emperor and Korean king, gift-giving and receiving through personal contacts occurred *en route* to Beijing also constituted an important conduit whereby the Korean embassy might accomplish various practical goals, such as obtaining several books, paintings, and calligraphies, luxury items, and learning new technologies. Among the new information and knowledge acquired through such diplomatic exchanges, Jesuit cartography and astronomy particular attracted Chosŏn intellectuals' attention. In 1631, the first contact between a Korean envoy, Chŏng Tu-Wŏn 鄭斗源 (1581-?), and Joaõ Rodrigues (1561‑1633), a Portuguese Jesuit skilled in astronomy and temporarily stationed in the military campaign of Dengzhou, Shandong Province, brought meaningful results.2 Rodrigues presented Chŏng with a number of books on European astronomy and geography, as well as a world map, a telescope, a sundial, and automatic striking clock, and pair of small firearms. Through this encounter, Chŏng received a set of five sheets of maps entitled *Complete Map of Ten Thousand Li* (*Wali quantu* 萬里 全圖), which is believed to be Matteo Ricci's map, *Records of Areas Outside the Concern of the Imperial Geographer* (*Zhifang waiji* 職方外 紀), a geographical treatise by Giulio Aleni (1582‑1649), *Explanation of*

1 Four major junctures of ritual importance are New Year's Day, the emperor's birthday, the winter solstice, and for the presentation of annual tribute. In the 257 years from 1637 through 1894, Chosŏn sent envoys to the Qing court a total of 507 times, while the Qing from 1636 through 1880 dispatched imperial envoys only 169 times.

2 The meeting was on Chŏng's return trip to Seoul from Beijing, in the 5th lunar month of 1631. The encounter between Chŏng and Rodrigues was unexpected; Chŏng travelled to China as an official tributary envoy of the Chosŏn dynasty to convey King Injo's condolences to the Ming Emperor Chongzhen 崇禎 (r. 1628‑1644), whereas Rodrigues was sent to assist Ming China from the Portuguese colony at Macao in response to the Ming's request for military aid against the Jurchens. When conflicts between the Ming and Jurchen were ever-intensifying, they were sent to China as the Ming's foreign allies.

*the Telescope* (*Yuanjing shuo* 遠鏡說) by Johann Adam Schall von Bell (1591‑1666), a telescope (*qianlijing* 千里鏡), *Star Maps of the Northern and Southern Hemispheres* (*Tianwen tu nanbei ji* 天文圖南北極), a sundial (*riguiguan* 日晷觀), an automatic striking clock, a gun (*niaochong* 鳥 銃), and *Memorial by the Westerner for Presenting Powerful Cannon* (*Xiyang gongxian shenwei dachong shu* 西洋貢獻神威大銃疏) (Lim 2016a). The Jesuit's world map, presumably a six-scroll map drawn by Matteo Ricci in 1602, was introduced to Korea as early as 1603, and its first record was found in *Classified Essays of Jibong* (*Chibong yusŏl* 芝峰類 說) written by Yi Su-Gwang 李睟光 (1563‑1628), a famous Korean scholar (Üçerler 2016, 3‑4). Chŏng suggested that Jesuits' gifts contributed to the fields of astronomy and military technology. In particular European astronomical knowledge would be helpful in reforming calendrical methods and correcting the errors in the positions of meridian stars. After about a decade, Schall von Bell befriended with the Korean Crown Prince Sohyŏn 昭顯世子 (1612‑45), who was then a hostage to the Manchu court in Shenyang and the Qing capital Yanjing. When the prince was finally allowed to return to Korea in 1645, the missionary presented him with books on the Western calendar and science, a map, a celestial globe and images of Christ.

From the late seventeenth century onward, the tension and conflicts between Qing and Chosŏn had been relaxed and limits on the activities of Korean envoys were lifted. They were allowed to tour the city and meet Chinese freely. Some of the most frequented places in Beijing were Catholic churches, where Korean emissaries met and conversed with the Jesuits. Korean envoys were eager to visit the churches and learn Western knowledge from the Jesuits. Some of them succeeded in establishing a favorable relationship with the Jesuit priests and were presented with various books, scientific instruments, maps, and oil paintings (Yi 2015).3 For instance, Yi Ki-Ji 李 器之 (1690‑1722), who visited Beijing on a tributary mission in 1720, befriended Portuguese and French Jesuits and visited the Catholic churches a total eleven times during his two-month stay. He was interested in the Jesuit's methods of astronomical calculation and their production of scientific instruments such as armillary spheres, mechanical clocks, telescopes, and other optical apparatus. Through this series of encounters Yi Ki-Ji received many valuable gifts, including a telescope, paper armillary sphere, a star atlas, Matteo

3 The influx of Western paintings by Chosŏn envoys is mentioned by Yi Ik 李瀷 (1681‑1763) in his *Sŏngho's Encyclopedic Discourse* (*Sŏngho sasŏl* 星湖僿說), vol. 4: "Most of the envoys traveling to Beijing recently bought Western paintings and have them hanging on their walls". Yi Ki-Ji 李器之 (1690‑1722), who visited Bejing in 1720, received seven Western paintings, and Yi Ŭi-Hyŏn 李宜顯 (1669‑1745) was gifted fifteen paintings. Yi Kyŏn-Myŏng 李健命 (1663‑1722) was presented with books of drawings and paintings by a Westerner in 1722.

Ricci's *The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven* (*Tianzhu shiyi* 天主 實義), Verbiest's *Map of the World* (*Kunyutu* 坤輿圖), alarm clocks, portable sundials, cigarettes, paintings, and poison-absorbent rocks (*Hŭpchŏngsŏk* 吸毒石) (Lim 2010). In the wall and ceiling paintings of the Jesuit church, the realistic and accurate representations achieved through linear perspective and shading effects were of utmost interest to the Chosŏn envoys visiting the Churches. The illusionistic mural paintings, which were mainly associated with Italian church frescoes of the Baroque period, made a deep impression on the Chosŏn viewers. Their responses are detailed in the Beijing travelogues by Yi Ki-Ji 李器之 (1690‑1722), Yi Tŏk-Mu 李德懋 (1741‑1793), and Pak Chi-Wŏn 朴趾源 (1737‑1805) (Yi 2015; Sŏ 2019a). Korean envoys who realized the practical importance of such astronomical knowledge visited the Qing Bureau of Astronomy (*Qiantian jian* 欽天監) during their tributary mission to China. In particular, Chosŏn scholars and astronomers were interested in Western astronomy as it was essential knowledge to conduct an accurate calendrical calculations that were necessary for the implementation of the *Shixianli* 時憲曆 (Calendar of the Conformity of Time), the new Qing calendrical system invented by Schall von Bell. Hong Tae-Yong met Augustin von Hallerstein and Anton Gogeisl at the South Church in Peking during his trip to Beijing in 1766. Through sporadic visits to the church and conversations with Jesuit astronomers, Hong was able to see the Jesuit's astronomical apparatuses and learn their views on celestial phenomenon and the structure of the heavens. He was given two pieces of small prints, woodblock-printed books, dried fruits and two pieces of poison-absorbent rocks (Baker 1982, 232-4).

Gifts from the European missionaries, unfortunately, were not fully appreciated in the early seventeenth century and were denounced as "deceitful, strange and useless things" (Lim 2016a, 157). However, when Western learning took root in Korea and Chosŏn intellectuals realized the value of such cartographic and cultural achievements, the Jesuit world maps, and star charts became important objects for the official envoys to see and then acquire them during their tributary missions to China. Many Jesuit cartographic works and celestial charts were brought into Korea, including several versions of Ricci's maps, Aleni's *Complete Map of Ten Thousand Countries* (*Wanguo quantu* 萬國全圖, 1623), Ferdinand Verbiest's *Complete Map of the World* (*Kunyu quantu* 坤輿全圖, 1672) and *Two General Maps of the Stars South and North of the Equator* (*Chidao nanbei liangzong xingtu* 赤道南北兩總星圖, 1674), and Ignatius Kögler's *Two General Maps of the Stars South and North of the Ecliptic* (*Huangdao nanbei liangzong xingtu* 黃道南北兩總星圖, 1723). These Jesuit world maps and celestial charts were considered gifts of practical and political value to be reproduced under the royal patronage.

#### 3 Figured Manuscript Copies of the Jesuit's World Maps

As Korea lacked direct contact with the Jesuit missionaries until the nineteenth century, world maps such as Ricci's were transmitted to the peninsular by Korean envoys returning from Beijing. Yi Su-Gwang's record in 1603 presents one of the earliest Korean encounters with European world maps brought to the court by an envoy. Yi simply called it a "terrestrial map of European countries" and it was drawn by a certain "European envoy" named Feng Baobao (馮寶寶). Because it consists of six scrolls, previous research has suggested that it is a copy of the famous *Complete Map of Ten Thousand Countries of the World* (*Kunyu wanguo quantu* 坤輿萬國全圖) by Ricci and Li Zhizao 李之藻 (1565‑1630) in 1602 (Lim 2011, 278‑9).

Matteo Ricci's world maps widely circulated in the Chosŏn and were even copied by royal order in 1708. When the Royal Bureau of Astronomy (*Kwansanggam* 觀象監) offered the copy of Shall von Bell's star atlas to King Sukchong 肅宗 (r. 1674‑1720) in the spring of 1708, the king was duly impressed.4 He ordered a copy of its terrestrial companion, which was ready later that year. Chief State Councilor and Director of the Royal Bureau of the Astronomy Ch'oe Sŏk-Chŏng 崔錫鼎 (1646‑1715) supervised the reproduction at that time. Three Korean copies resulting from this project are known, each in the form of an eight- or ten-panel screen with the 1708 preface by Ch'oe Sŏk-Chŏng. Court sponsorship of the reproduction of these two Jesuit maps was for practical and ideological reasons. First, it was driven by an urgent need of the Chosŏn court to keep its calendrical system in accordance with that of the Qing calendar. The *Shixian li* calendrical system based on Schall von Bell's methods was promulgated in 1645 after the Manchu conquest and Chosŏn, as a tributary country to the Qing, immediately adopted this new system. However, the lack of knowledge caused the noticeable discrepancies between local and the Qing calendars, so King Sukchong wanted to master the principles of the new Jesuit astronomy. Second, Ming loyalism was salient at Sukchong's court, which culminated in the establishment of the Altar for the Great Repayment (*Taebodan* 大報壇) in the rear garden of Changdŏk Palace in 1704.5 Ming loyalism and anti-Qing sentiment were deeply rooted in the minds of Chosŏn intellectuals even in the sixty years after the demise of the Ming dynasty in 1644. Choe's preface illuminates how Chosŏn intellectuals' Confucian ideology and perception of the Western world map stemmed from a Sino-centric worldview (Pegg 2019, 49).

4 Adam Schall's astronomical chart, *Two General Maps of the Stars South and North of the Ecliptic*, served as a model of the 1708 screen.

5 This monument was built to commemorate Emperor Wanli's generosity and benevolence in salvaging Chosŏn during the Imjin War.

Although the terrestrial maps of past and present [in East Asian tradition] have adopted a variety of ways [of representing the world], commonly observed were [first] to represent a square earth as a flat surface and [second] to limit the scope of the maps up to the region that the sagely teaching of China had reached. The Western scholars' ideas, however, adopted as the fundamental principle [the idea of] a round earth. They said, "The heavens are round and so is the earth". […] Across all the surface of the round earth, they put ten thousand countries and their names. The Nine Provinces of China are located on the Asian Continent and near the Northern Region. Their teachings are exaggerated and fabulous, which lie beyond reasonable discussions and thus could not be counted as orthodox teachings. (Lim 2011, 288)