This photo provided by the Italian Geographical Society shows a math class conducted by an Italian national for Koreans in Seoul between 1902 and 1903. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Feb. 26 (Korea Bizwire) — The opening ceremony of a photo exhibition commemorating the 140th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Korea and Italy was held in Seoul on Monday.
The special exhibition featuring about 70 photos and video materials showing the development of Korean-Italian relations will take place on the third floor of the National Museum of Korean Contemporary History in central Seoul from Tuesday to March 31.
The monthlong exhibition, hosted by the Italian Embassy, Yonhap News Agency, ANSA News Agency and the Italian Cultural Institute of Seoul, will be held under the theme of “All roads lead to history, Italy and Korea,” to look back on the 140 years of history since Korea (then Joseon Dynasty) and Italy signed a trade treaty in 1884. It is sponsored by South Korea’s foreign and culture ministries.
The opening ceremony was attended by a number of dignitaries, including Culture Minister Yu In-chon, Hong Young-pyo, president of the Korean-Italian Parliamentarian Friendship Association, and Seong Ghi-hong, president and CEO of Yonhap News Agency.
“‘Hand in Hand,’ composed by Italy’s Giorgio Moroder and sung by South Korea’s Koreana band is still considered the greatest theme song in Olympic history. This exhibition contains historical moments between the two countries,” Yu said in an address at the ceremony, adding it is also a starting point for the 2024-25 Year of Cultural Exchange between South Korea and Italy.
This photo provided by the Italian Geographical Society shows a central Seoul street filled with tile-roofed houses on both sides in the early 20th century. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
Seong said the photo exhibition is intended to look back on the time the two countries spent together and Yonhap News will play a role as media to further develop bilateral exchanges and cooperation.
The online exhibition of the same photos (www.yna.co.kr/together140) kicked off Monday morning.
Notably, photos and videos regarding the activities of the 68th Red Cross Hospital, an Italian medical unit dispatched to aid South Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War, will be released for the first time. About 60 medical officers and nurses first set foot on Korean soil in 1951 and they treated approximately 230,000 people until 1955.
This photo shows an Italian Red Cross ship operating in South Korea in 1953 during the Korean War. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
The exhibition will also feature a photo of Carlo Rossetti, the second Italian consul to Korea who arrived here in 1902, riding a palanquin and other photos the consul took himself in Korea.
Photos of an Italian Catholic priest who operated a free soup kitchen in Korea and a Catholic sister who cared for Korean leprosy patients for half a century will also be on display.
Photos taken by Rossetti, who once said the overall shape of the Korean Peninsula is largely reminiscent of the Italian Peninsula, are important materials that provide a glimpse into Korea in the early 20th century. They include photos of men wearing Korean traditional clothes and hats attending a math class between 1902 and 1903 and a Seoul street filled with tile-roofed houses on both sides.
(Yonhap)
