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| South Korea purchased the building in Washington, D.C., that housed the former Korean legation in 2012. It reopens as a museum next week. Photo by Yonhap |
By Elizabeth Shim, UPI
A historical building in Washington, D.C., that belonged to Korea but was seized by Imperial Japan for a mere $5 will reopen as a museum to the public next Tuesday.
The former Korean legation building in Logan Circle opened in February 1889 but was shuttered in November 1905 following the signing of the Japan-Korea Treaty of 1905.
The agreement forced Korea to relinquish its sovereignty and become a protectorate of Japan.
South Korean newspaper Segye Ilbo reported Tuesday the three-story Victorian building has been restored following South Korea's acquisition of the building six years ago.
The project to repurchase the building began in 2003, a year marking the centennial of Korean immigration to the United States.
The movement culminated in the October 2012 purchase of the building for $3.5 million from its previous owner, according to South Korea's Munhwa Ilbo.
Seoul's Cultural Heritage Administration conducted extensive research into historical archives to restore the house to its Victorian-era past.
Desks, chairs, carpeting and wallpaper were chosen to reflect the building's heritage, Seoul said.
An exhibit of photographs at the new museum shows pre-colonial Korea's diplomatic activities in the United States, including those of Minister Park Jeong-yang, who also served as a Korean diplomat to Tsarist Russia.
The mission was shut down in 1905 after the treaty was signed and sold to the Japanese for $5.
Japan then sold the building to an American buyer for $10, according to the Segye Ilbo.
Korea purchased the building for $25,000 in 1889.
The opening ceremony for the museum on next Tuesday coincides with South Korean President Moon Jae-in's visit to Washington.
Moon might visit the ceremony, according to reports.
Korea became a Japanese colony in 1910 and nine years later Korean independence activists staged massive protests against colonial rule.
The March 1 Movement will mark its centennial next year.
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