London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

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Selected publications

  • Booklist: Silla Kingdom (20 titles)
    • BKS talk: A whistle-stop archaeology and history of Korea

      The British Korean Society is hosting a talk on early Korean history and archaeology. Open to non-members. A whistle-stop archaeology and history of Korea: from the Palaeolithic to the Three Kingdoms Period Presentation by Hari Blackmore Hosted by Martin Uden – Chairman of the BKS Thursday 18th February 2021, 6.30pm Via Zoom | Register here … [Read More]

      The Art of Printing: Korea’s Evolving Printing Types

      Organised to coincide with the London Book Fair, this exhibition at the KCC is curated by the Korean Publishers Association: The Art of Printing: Korea’s Evolving Printing Types Exhibition Dates: 07 April 2014 – 14 June 2014 Venue: Korean Cultural Centre UK The World’s Oldest Wooden and Metal Printing Technologies – Korea’s Printing Culture presented … [Read More]

      Exhibition visit: Lotions and potions in old Joseon

      The current exhibition at the KCC gives us an historical overview of the methods used by Korean womanhood to beautify themselves. Clearly it’s not possible to exhibit the original ancient cosmetics themselves, but the containers used to store them have survived: from Silla and Baekje kingdom earthenware powder bowls and oil jars, via beautifully inlaid … [Read More]

      2012 Travel Diary #19: Beopgyesa Temple and those Japanese feng-shui stakes

      Beopgyesa Temple (법게사) is the highest in Sancheong County and at least the third-highest in Korea. The good people of Sancheong believe that Beopgyesa is the highest temple in South Korea, a claim which is supported by Beopgyesa’s entry on the Cultural Heritage Administration website, where the following text is to be found: “It is … [Read More]

      2012 Travel Diary #16: Silla pagodas, Korea’s first beautiful village, and Nammyeong’s tomb

      Sancheong, Gyeongsangnam-do, Thursday 29 March 2012. Today is the day we start the ascent of Jirisan, but first there’s a couple of local sites of interest that I need to visit. First, the two Unified Silla dynasty stone pagodas, which are now the only remnants of Dansoksa, a temple built in the middle of the eighth … [Read More]

      Archaeology study day in Cambridge

      An interesting half day this Saturday, 4 February: Study Day on the Archaeology of Early States on the Korean Peninsula AT THE McDONALD INSTITUTE FOR ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE SATURDAY 4TH FEBRUARY 2012 Organised by Professor Kim Jong-Il (Seoul National University and Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge) and Dr Simon Kaner (Sainsbury Institute … [Read More]

      Buddha’s Voice – The Bell of King Seongdeok

      People sometimes take a jaundiced view of Korea’s estimation of the importance of its cultural heritage. In the case of the Sacred Bell of King Seongdeok, however, it was foreigner, Dr. Otto Kummel, a director at the National Museum of Germany, who suggested that the museum’s description of the bell as ‘the best in Korea’, … [Read More]

      The Life and Teachings of Master Wonhyo

      The life of Master Wonhyo (617-686 A.D.) is a typical Korean paradox. He was a scholar who composed over 100 works on Buddhist philosophy, whose influence in scholarship and teaching was felt in China and other surrounding countries. He is acknowledged today as the foremost figure in the history of Korean Buddhism. And yet, many … [Read More]

      Korean art – two millennia of globalisation

      “Why did it have to end so early?” asked a member of the audience at the conclusion of the British Museum’s study morning “Korea at the Crossroads” last weekend, 13 November. Strictly, the event had overrun by about five minutes, but you knew what she meant. More to the point would have been the question … [Read More]

      Korean ceramic tea bowls and tea culture

      Eunjung Shin continues her series on themes from the past, inspired by objects in the British Museum’s Korea Gallery. One thousand years ago, drinking tea was an important social activity in Buddhist Korea. After Buddhism was introduced from China in the 4th century it flourished up until the end of the Koryo dynasty (935-1392) in … [Read More]