Thorough research, good maintenance and promotion of returned cultural assets are as important as the repatriation of these treasures, said the chief of the state organization in charge of gathering Korean assets held overseas.

It is also crucial to forge ties with the owners of the items in order to induce more people to return valuable Korean items to the country in the future, said Ahn Hwi-joon, chairman of the Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation, on Monday.

“There are many valuable cultural properties that have been repatriated to Korea, and then forgotten. It is sad because that is not the purpose of their return,” Ahn said at a press luncheon. 

The foundation, which is charged with overseeing the process of the classification, negotiation and return of Korean cultural heritage overseas, will hold its first exhibition, “Album of Jeong Seon, Returned to Waegwan Abbey,” at the National Palace Museum. The exhibition, which opens Tuesday, will have on display a total of 21 paintings by Jeong Seon (1676-1750), including three paintings of Mount Geumgangsan that were repatriated to Korea from Germany in 2005. 

The album was taken to St. Ottilien Abbey in 1925 as part of institution chief Norbert Weber’s collection during his visit to Joseon (1392-1910). The paintings are said to belong to the genre of Korean true-view landscape painting which emerged in the mid-Joseon era.

The album drew much public attention in 1975 when a Korean scholar discovered the paintings. In 2005, St. Ottilien agreed to a permanent loan of the album to the Waegwan Abbey in North Gyeongsang Province, without conditions attached.

The foundation said the exhibition will set an example for how returned cultural heritage should treated in Korea, hoping that more than 140,000 Korean cultural assets taken to foreign countries would follow suit.

“We have been looking into not only each painting, but also the arrangement of pages and even the history behind the album. We have published a book detailing the return process and will send copies of the book to St. Ottilien so that they could always remember the paintings,” said Cha Mi-ae, promotion team manager of the foundation.

“Some Koreans think that it is natural for foreigners to return Korean cultural assets no matter what. But in reality, it is very difficult to verify the nature of their acquisition, let alone justify repatriation to Korea. The best way is to inspire people or organizations to return the items voluntarily. But who will be willing to do that if no one takes good care of them?” Ahn said.

“It is also crucial to express gratitude, hand them a plaque and provide them with follow-ups about the items that will give donors a sense of security and bond with their collection even after the donation. In this way we can build healthy relationships with other potential donors and eventually encourage them to participate in the good deed,” Ahn said.

As part of the foundation’s “Returned Cultural Property Series,” an exhibition will be held next year highlighting some of the 1,370 cultural assets that were repatriated to Korea from Japan in 1965, following Korea-Japan Talks. Ahn admitted that hardly any studies on them or promotional efforts have been conducted since their return.

“If we do not make the most use of them, how can we ask for more repatriation?” Ahn, professor emeritus of art at Seoul National University said.

The “Album of Jeong Seon, Returned to Waegwan Abbey” exhibition runs through Feb. 2 at the National Palace Museum. For more information call (02) 3701-7500.

By Bae Ji-sook (baejisook@heraldcorp.com)