Korean National Treasure Torched

[Monte Smith]

This is the biggest act of vandalism since the Taliban blew up those two monumental buddhas. At least this is but the work of one crazy firebug.

Reuters:

Man arrested for destroying S.Korea's top treasure
By Jon Herskovitz
Tue Feb 12, 3:43 AM ET


Namdaemun

South Korean police said on Tuesday they arrested a pensioner who confessed to burning down a 600-year-old gate designated as the country's number one national treasure because he was angry about a compensation payment.

The stone and wood structure Namdaemun, or "Great South Gate," was reduced to a charred hulk on Monday, with newspaper editorials lamenting the destruction of an iconic symbol of national pride.

Laborer Heo Eun stood at Namdaemun and summing up the sense of loss and shock shared by many South Koreans said: "It feels like the heart of the nation was destroyed overnight."

The 69-year-old suspect is a convicted arsonist identified only by his family name Chae, said Namdaemun police station chief Kim Young-soo. Chae was taken into custody late on Monday and told police he had planned the fire for several months.

"(He said) he committed the crime out of anger because he felt the government did not take enough care with the appeal he filed after being insufficiently compensated for redevelopment in his residential area," Kim told a news conference.

Chae, who was given a suspended sentence after setting fire that singed a small part of a palace in Seoul in 2006, said he used a ladder to climb into the gate's pavilion. He then poured paint thinner on the floor and set it ablaze, police said.

"I would like to say sorry to all South Koreans. I cannot apologize enough to my children and the people of this country," Chae told a group of reporters at a police station.

Newspaper editorials on Tuesday said the loss of Namdaemun was an embarrassment that could have easily been prevented through better security and fire fighting measures.

The gate was the oldest wooden structure in Seoul. It had withstood invasions, colonial occupation and was one of the few historic structures in the capital to remain standing after the 1950-1953 Korean War.

"It was ruined in six hours due to our lack of care and attention," the mainstream JoongAng Ilbo newspaper said.

Experts said misjudgment by nearly everyone involved led to the devastation. The head of the Cultural Heritage Administration, whose agency faced stiff criticism for its management of the national treasure, offered to resign on Tuesday, a government official said.

Many of the thousands who viewed the ruins pointed fingers angrily at politicians, bureaucrats, firefighters and police for failing to protect the landmark.

Some blamed the outgoing government of President Roh Moo-hyun, which had a separate national treasure burn down in a forest fire during its watch, for not learning from that loss.

Others castigated President-elect Lee Myung-bak, who as mayor of Seoul allowed the gate to be opened to the public and promoted it as a tourist destination. Chae told police he selected Namdaemun because of its easy access.

The gate, used as the centerpiece of the country's international tourism campaign, was constructed in 1398 and served as the main southern entrance for Seoul when it became Korea's capital more than 600 years ago and was a walled city.

Ancient kings built gates at specific locations in the belief they would strike a balance with nature that could bring them fortune or block evil spirits. Namdaemun was one of the great gates and built to block the energy of fire and protect the main Gyeongbokgung palace a short distance to the north.

The structure, also called Sungnyemun or "Gate of Exalted Ceremonies," has been restored several times. The last major renovation took place in the early 1960s.

An official with the Cultural Heritage Administration said it would spend three years and 20 billion won ($21.2 million) to rebuild the structure.

($1=945.0 Won)

(Additional reporting by Jessica Kim and Lee Jiyeon; Editing by Keiron Henderson and Bill Tarrant)

[Gary Sisco]

I'd not want to do time in Korea for a cultural-political crime like that. Abandon all hope.

[patricia]

I would imagine that distruction of the Empire State Building or the Washington monument would be considered every bit as serious by many, although the history of those buildings is much shorter.
There would be those who would think that capitol punishment should be applicable, should somebody blow them up or burn them down.
Look at the unpleasantness that the destruction of the WTC and the damage to the Pentagon caused.
Yes. Thousands of lives were lost.
But the reminders are the destroyed buildings.
Heads are still rolling in Iraq over that, I think.

[Monte Smith]

Namdaemun is 600 years old and central to the city of Seoul. There is no analog to that in American culture.

[Scott Dolan]

Well, crap.

I was looking forward to seeing that.

[patricia]

Namdaemun is 600 years old and central to the city of Seoul. There is no analog to that in American culture.

I know that Monte.
Hence my comment.
Similarly, the history destroyed and being destroyed in Iraq was also thousands of years in the making.

[Scott Dolan]

You rival Arriana Huffington when it comes to tying anything and everything in with the war in Iraq. Neither of you ever miss a beat.

[jesus marion joseph]

Namdaemun is 600 years old and central to the city of Seoul. There is no analog to that in American culture.

[Scott Dolan]

Good one!!

[jesus marion joseph]

Even from Mexico, I still got it!

[Jon Abbey]

of course, that's only 255 years old, big difference.

[Nim Chimpsky]

Namdaemun is 600 years old and central to the city of Seoul. There is no analog to that in American culture.

How about the Grand Canyon? That's pretty old! About 6000 years if you take the Bible literally.

[patricia]

You rival Arriana Huffington when it comes to tying anything and everything in with the war in Iraq. Neither of you ever miss a beat.

Not at all. I think that comparing the destruction of historical sites, such as the one in Korea and the ones in Iraq, as well as the ancient Buddas in Afghanistan with the relative youth of the buildings involved in the destruction of the WTC is fair.
In Korea, what sort of punishment can Chae expect?

[Nim Chimpsky]

Talk about hanging on to useless junk. The scrap metal market in China is crying out for stuff like this.

[Scott Dolan]

of course, that's only 255 years old, big difference.

Not really. The historical significance is quite similar, as far as the culture and the country are concerned.

[Monte Smith]

Balls. Here in America, we have nothing to match the place of Namdaemun in the national psyche. You'd have to destroy this:

[Brian Olewnick]

[Uli]

[Monte Smith]

You guys are posting some pictures of some very old things, but those are not American. Not United States of American. Not in the way that Namdaemun is Korean. Namdaemun was built by Koreans, not by a separate, aboriginal culture that once occupied Korea (it's far too new for that, of course), and it is an architectural and cultural centerpoint of their biggest city.

[Scott Dolan]

Goddamn how I miss those Up With People halftime shows...

[Al in NYC]

Actually, most of the wooden parts of the Namdaemun were "restored" (i.e. rebuilt) in the early 1960s. Ancientness is often not quite what it seems in East Asia, at least not in the way we think about it. Still, I remember the place very well - went to the fun market on the blocks around it many times - and it is a tragedy that some fool burned it down.

[Monte Smith]

When I was there, Dongdaemun (East Gate) was the better market. I'll never forget the wall trellis of pig's heads. Yummy!

[walto]

"(He said) he committed the crime out of anger because he felt the government did not take enough care with the appeal he filed after being insufficiently compensated for redevelopment in his residential area," Kim told a news conference."

Rollie! Judge Thomas! Ron Paul! Look! Another devoted foe of eminent domain!

[rollhead]

Fixed

Balls. Here in America, we have nothing to match the place of Namdaemun in the national psyche. You'd have to destroy this:

[Monte Smith]

Ooh, it's pretty!

[groover]

Can't they just order another Namdaemun from China?

It may be hollow, made of plastic, and covered with lead paint, but who really notice?

[Scott Dolan]

but who really notice?

Were you saying that with a fake Chinese accent?

[groover]

Were you saying that with a fake Chinese accent?

You think I talk sing-song? Who you think I am, Hop Sing?

[Nim Chimpsky]

Oy Vey! Enough with the cheesy accents already.

[Gary Sisco]

Let's see, 600 years ago. 1408. Americans hadn't been overrun by immigrants yet. Almost all Europeans were sleeping and grunting with their pigs in vermin-ridden shacks thatched with rodent nests. Bathing was considered unhealthy and so avoided. Fleas and lice were ways of life.

Well, at least they had ale.