• Sitemap

인천광역시 중구 문화관광

통합검색

Incheon Jung-gu

-℃-

Other cultural assets

Other cultural assets996 Let us introduce a few other cultural assets with high historical value although they are not state/ municipal designated cultural assets.

Other Cultural PropertiesThese properties are not appointed as national or local cultural properties, but are introduced for their significant historical value.

Site of the Incheon Mint Bureau

Location, Era

LocationJeon-dong, Jung-gu, Incheon
Era29th year of King Gojong (1892)

The Site of the Incheon Mint Bureau is the land currently occupied by Incheon Girl’s High School.

The Sangpyeong Tongbo, a coin used in the Joseon Dynasty, was not only inconvenient to use due to its heavy weight, but also caused inflation and hindered improvement of the barter economy since it was manufactured five times more than Dangojeon (which had a legal value of five times that of Sangpyeong Tongbo) and distributed by force in 1885, the 20th year of King Gojong. Finally, in the 22nd year of King Gojong, the Mint Bureau was established, and it minted and issued western-style currency.

Since the 24th year of King Gojong, Jopyechang (department of currency manufacturing) of the Mint Bureau was established at the Northern side of Namdaemun elementary school, and issued the coin.

The Mint Bureau was established with the support of Japan. It imported the machinery for coin manufacture from Germany and invited German technicians to begin manufacture, also importing copper, the raw material for the coin, from Japan.

However, it was hard to transport copper before the Gyeongin Line (Seoul-Incheon) was completed.

Thus, in April of 1892, the 29th year of King Gojong, the Mint Bureau was moved to Jeon-dong in Incheon and began to manufacture the coins after constructing a new government office building using KRW 60,000 of Japanese funds in November of the same year.

At the time, the coins were made using silver and copper, each called a silver coin and copper coin, and they were divided into 5 types, including 5 nyang (silver coin), 1 nyang (silver coin), 2 jeon and 5 bun (nickel coins), and 1 bun (brass coin).
There were three buildings in the Mint Bureau in a U shape to form a courtyard. There was a main gate, general offices, coin inspection room, manufacturing room, etc. in the main building.
In the eastern building was a warehouse for storing raw materials, an engine room, etc., and in the western building was a warehouse for manufactured coins, ironworks, finishing room, inspection room, etc.
There were also affiliated facilities, such as a circular polishing room, metalworks, warehouse for equipment, company housing, etc.

After opening the Incheon Noryangjinmun (Noryangjin Gate) of the Gyeongin Line on September 1899, the Mint Bureau was moved again from Incheon to Yongsan in Seoul in July of 1900.
After that, the building of the Mint Bureau was used by the Japanese Railroad Department during the Russo-Japanese War, and became a Japanese elementary school. It was then used as the school building of Incheon Girl’s School, but was finally demolished with the completion of the new building.