Gwangtonggwan Hall

Gwangtonggwan Hall is one of Korea's oldest surviving bank buildings. When it was completed in 1909 it was the head office of Daehan Cheonil Bank (now Woori Bank), and today it is used as Woori Bank's Jongno Finance Centre. It took its name from the nearby Gwangtong Bridge. Design and construction were carried out by the Takjibu (Ministry of Finance) Construction Office, with work starting in February 1908 and finishing in May 1909. The ground floor was occupied by Daehan Cheonil Bank and by the Note Exchange Cooperative (Sudo Johap), each with its own separate entrance, while the upper floor served as an assembly space containing a meeting room, a smoking room and a waiting room. Gwangtonggwan Hall is built in an eclectic style combining brick and stone. Its façade has Ionic column capitals and a pediment ornament at the centre, and Baroque-style domes originally stood on either side of the building. Half of the building was destroyed by fire in 1914 and subsequently restored to its present form; in the process the roof, columns and window decoration were considerably altered, but the overall shape of the building has been well preserved to this day.

AI Translation

Where it is

Region

Jung-gu, Seoul

Designation

Provincial Monument · 시도기념물