Former Main Building of Gunsan Customs

Gunsan was opened as a treaty port in 1899 and became the harbour through which the rice of the Honam plain — the most productive farmland in Korea — was shipped to Japan. This building, completed in 1908, is where that trade was administered. There were watchtowers and inspection offices around it once; the main hall and a warehouse are what remain. The red brick was imported from Belgium and the glass from Europe, which tells you something about both the budget and the intent. It survives close to its original form and is one of the clearest examples of the Western building methods that arrived with the treaty ports. Only three customs houses of the period are left in Korea. Standing in front of it, the thing worth holding onto is what went out through it.

Original Text

Where it is

Region

Gunsan, Jeonbuk

Designation

Historic Site · 사적