With non-fungible tokens (NFTs) all the rage nowadays, one of Korea’s most precious national treasures is being reborn as an NFT.
Tech media site PUBLISH reported last week that it was joining hands with the Kansong Art and Culture Foundation to tokenize the Hunminjeongeum Haerye, or the “Explanations and Examples of the Correct Sounds for the Instruction of the People,” a Joseon-era commentary on the promulgation of Korea’s national alphabet, Hangeul. It is believed to have been published about 550 years ago.
The Korean government has designated the text as National Treasure No. 70.
The Hunminjeongeum Haerye which is in collection of the Kansong Art Museum [KANSONG ART AND CULTURE FOUNDATION]
The foundation will create 100 NFTs priced at KRW 100 million (about USD 87,000) each, with the funds raised going to operating the foundation, which is reportedly in debt.
Among other things, the Kansong Art and Culture Foundation operates the Kansong Art Museum, Korea’s oldest private art museum and where the only existing copy of the Hunminjeongeum Haerye is kept.
From the Korea Herald:
“It is a breakthrough for the foundation that has run the museum with debt. We thought it would be much better than selling cultural properties at auctions like we attempted last year,” said Baik In-san, the chief curator of the foundation. “The foundation had no other business model besides hosting exhibitions. Profits from exhibitions are not enough to run the museum.”
If the Foundation issues the tokens, it would make the Hunminjeongeum Haerye the first Korean national treasure to be tokenized.
According to PUBLISH, images of the text will be minted using the Ethereum blockchain.
Non-fungible tokens are blockchain-based units of data representing unique digital items. As the name suggests, they are non-fungible — which is to say, you cannot exchange with something else. The Verge has a pretty good — and pretty irreverent — primer to NFTs for those who’d like to learn more.
Now, you might be wondering who the heck would spend close to 90 grand to buy an admittedly unique digital image of an old book. Even the Kansong Foundation acknowledges this, but the foundation’s chief curator told the Korea Herald they’d consider purchases to be a form of donation to the foundation. Instead of a plaque, you get an NFT, I guess.
For what it’s worth, the Cultural Heritage Administration — the state organ responsible for preserving Korea’s cultural heritage — is taking a cautious approach to the plan, though an official from the body told the JoongAng Ilbo daily that as long as there are no concerns regarding damaging the text, they have no grounds to oppose its digitalization.
