Japan's Plunder of Korean Cultural Relics

Japan's plunder of Korean cultural relics flayed

Pyongyang, June 21 (KCNA) -- Rodong Sinmun today in a signed article urges Japan to sincerely apologize for its destruction and plunder of cultural relics of Korea, return all the looted cultural relics and make compensation for all those destroyed. The article cites facts to prove that after the military occupation of Korea the Japanese imperialists destroyed and looted a lot of cultural relics, thus doing unspeakable mental and material damage to the Korean people. The destruction and plunder of cultural relics in Korea were organized crimes committed under a premeditated plan of the Japanese government. As early as in 1894 the Japanese imperialists worked out and promulgated even an "ordinance" what they called "method of collecting treasure" and dispatched many spies to Korea to survey and get firsthand knowledge of distribution of cultural relics.

After occupying Korea, the Japanese imperialists took away cultural relics from various parts of Korea under the guidance of such Japanese bosses as Japanese "Resident-General" in Korea Ito Hirobumi and first Japanese "Governor-General" Terauchi. They threw into fire hundreds of thousands of history books of hundreds of kinds. Among them were "Biography of Ulji Mun Dok" and "Tales of Great Men". And they also looted tens of thousands of national classic books listed as national treasures including Rijosilrok (the true records of the Ri dynasty.) They went the length of plundering Koreans of heirlooms handed down for generations. They took away at least tens of thousands of cultural relics under the name of "exhibition". The Japanese imperialists' destruction and plunder of cultural treasures was most hideous and barbarous. They took to Japan many relics inside King Kongmin's mausoleum, one of the mausoleums offering valuable data on the study of the technique of Koryo stone-building during Koryo dynasty after opening it through a blasting. The same savage method was employed to destroy and loot mural paintings inside three tombs in Kangso. Their plunder of Korean cultural relics can never be covered up and they will certainly be made to pay for their crimes despite the flow of time, the article concludes.

Savage Exhumation of Tombs by the Japanese

Pyongyang, May 9 (KCNA) -- Japan indiscriminately destroyed and plundered a lot of cultural properties as part of its policy to obliterate the Korean nation after it occupied Korea by force of arms. The savage exhumation of tombs by the Japanese imperialists across the country is touching off the indignation of the Korean people as the days go by. The Japanese exhumed more than 2,000 tombs including kings' mausoleums in Kaesong, Kanghwa Islet, Haeju and other areas in a matter of a few years from 1904. They made no scruple to exhume and destroy the mausoleum of Tangun, the ancestral father of the Korean nation. They dug the grave mounds, destroyed the ceilings of grave chambers and coffins. There was not a mausoleum left untouched at that time. They took filigrees Koryo celadon and all other cultural properties from mausoleums.

Vandalism and plunder of cultural relics were committed in other tombs in different parts of the country. According to records available, in December 1921 the Japanese imperialists dug a tomb of a couple in Ryangsan, South Kyongsang Province, which was entombed in the age of Silla and robbed it of more than 100 pieces of cultural properties including necklaces and earrings. In October 1924 they dug out ancient tombs in the vicinity of Pyongyang and carried away all valuable articles. More than 1,400 tombs in areas along the taedong river and Ryongyon-myon were dug down in 10 years. The Japanese imperialists' barbarities committed in Korea are criminal acts unprecedented in human history. Those Japanese who witnessed the scene made the following testimonies:

"Nowadays barbarities (exhumation of ancient tombs) were prompted by a dream getting of a windfall of new business opportunities since they came to rural villages of Korea. They dug all tombs related to legends which said that gold bowls were entombed or a gold rooster crew inside a tomb on new year's day." ( Koizumi, head of "Pyongyang Museum" during the Japanese imperialists' occupation). Book Rakrang and Pyongyang of Legends (page 9 of 1934 edition) says that "any Japanese in Pyongyang who had not kept an old mirror or earthenware dug out from Rakrang tombs were considered to be a fool."

Japan [now] has more Korean cultural properties than Korea. All the Korean people strongly demand Japan make a formal apology for its past vandalism and unconditionally return and compensate for all that they plundered and destroyed.

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