The Bucheon Cultural Center (Director Kwon Soon-ho) successfully hosted the "Bucheon Cultural Center Archival Culture Tour" starting September 19, 2026. Spanning a 1-day, 2-night itinerary through September 20, the tour took participants across Yeongwol-gun and Pyeongchang-gun in Gangwon Province.

Explorers visited Cheongnyeongpo, the place of exile for King Danjong, and Jangneung Royal Tomb, directly experiencing how Yeongwol became a homeland of "loyalty and fidelity" through stories of the tragic life, exile, and royal tomb construction of King Danjong. Afterwards, participants toured Seondol Tourist Site—a unique natural topography where the Donggang and Seogang rivers intersect—and visited Beopheungsa Temple, one of the five major Jeokmyeolbogung (sanctuaries housing the Buddha's relics).

This tour was organized to understand the process of history transforming into content and records becoming stories by examining the storytelling of the recent film "The King and the Man." A total of 76 citizens participated, consisting of members from the Bucheon Cultural Exploration Team, taxi tour commentators, and the Bucheon Cultural Center.

On the second day, the group headed to Mt. Odaesan in Pyeongchang, home to the Odaesan Sago (history archives) built to protect the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty from foreign invasions. First, they visited Woljeongsa Temple, renowned for its beautiful forests and history, absorbing the ambiance of the millennium-old temple and strolling through the fir tree forest.

Next, they visited the National Museum of the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, located at the entrance of Woljeongsa, to learn about the significance of the Odaesan Sago and the misfortunes faced by Joseon royal records through the Japanese colonial period. Guided by a curator, participants listened in detail to why the Joseon royal court stored "archival materials" in the rugged mountains of Mt. Odaesan, and how historical records containing Joseon's history were damaged by Japanese colonial forces and subsequently returned. This provided a meaningful time to reflect on the value and significance of historical documentation.

Notably, the National Museum of the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty has been drawing attention by holding a special exhibition titled "A King's Royal Procession to Gangwon Province," themed around King Sejo’s royal inspection of Woljeongsa. On the first day of the tour, participants heard stories in Yeongwol about King Danjong's tragic exile and death, the posthumous restoration of his throne, and the conferring of honors upon loyal subjects.

This seamlessly connected to the story of King Sejo—Danjong's uncle who usurped the throne—reconstructing Woljeongsa and visiting Mt. Odaesan to cleanse his bad karma and heal his illness. Many tour participants gave rave reviews, noting that it greatly helped them understand the history of the early Joseon royal family and its records as the tour successfully concluded.

This archival culture tour hosted by the Bucheon Cultural Center was conducted as part of the Bucheon Archive Revitalization Project, an initiative aimed at reviving and documenting Bucheon's archival culture and cultural contents. Running since 2022, the Bucheon Archive Revitalization Project has produced the 5th generation of the Bucheon Cultural Exploration Team and graduates of the Bucheon Local History Tour Taxi training course as of 2026, annually introducing Bucheon's modern and contemporary materials and interviews with local elders through books and videos.

The Bucheon Cultural Center is scheduled to hold an academic seminar on October 16 (Fri) at the Chaeumnle Hall of the Bucheon Cultural Center to uncover Bucheon's independence activists, and the 4th Bucheon Cultural Place Name Academic Conference on November 10 (Tue) at the Solan Art Hall. Culture- and history-loving citizens of Bucheon are warmly encouraged to participate and show their interest. For more information regarding Bucheon Cultural Center events and activities, please visit the official website (https://bucheonculture.or.kr/).

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