Okinawa is generally known to us as a significant strategic military base in Japan for the U.S. Armed Forces since the end of World War II. However, it was the monarchial independent state of Ryukyu for nearly 500 years, from 1429 to 1879, to be precise.
Comparable to the Shurei-mon Gate used for ceremonial entrance to the 16th-century Shuri Castle, Korea's Sungnyemun Gate (a.k.a Namdaemun) has served as Seoul's ceremonial gateway since it was built in 1398. It is one of the four major gates in the fortress walls that provided security for the Joseon's capital. "Shurei-mon" means "Gate of Following Courtesy," while Korea's Sungnyemun translates to "Gate Honoring Propriety."
Remarkably, a wide variety of Joseon Kingdom shards of pottery were unearthed at the site of Shuri Castle through archeological excavation in 1984. Ten years later, some Goryeo Kingdom roof tile-ends with engraved lotus designs, and a roof tile with an engraved inscription, were discovered at Urasoe Castle in northern Naha City. The inscription on the tile proclaims "this was produced by a master craftsman in the year of Gyeyu based on the 60-year (sexagenary) circle or the Rooster zodiac sign." The roof tile is now believed to have been used on the Castle during the 12th to 13th century and there might have been brisk cultural exchanges between the Ryukyu Islands and Goryeo even before the unified kingdom was established there.
It was a shock to learn that Shuri Castle, the symbol of Okinawa, had been completely destroyed by fire at the end of October 2019. And as collateral damage, a number of other precious cultural assets of the Kingdom of Ryukyu ― the so-called Gusuku Sites, listed as UNESCO World Heritage Sites, were damaged by the fire.
The devastated Shuri Castle of Okinawa conjures up memories of other recent disasters such as the fire at Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris (April 2019), the raging fire at the National Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro (September 2018), as well as the colossal damage to Korea's Namdaemun in February 2008. All of the three mentioned enshrine their ancestors' sacred spirit, wisdom and identity respectively. Korea's Namdaemun Gate was only recently restored to its original appearance. I do hope that the restoration of the National Museum of Brazil, the Notre Dame Cathedral and Shuri Castle will be carried out following extensive research.
On another note, let me end by sharing another concern with you. Now that the National Museum of Korea attracts so many people who enjoy the museum's precious collections, have enough precautions been taken to prevent a fire disaster? Are the security systems at the museum really up-to-date? It is an absolute must that sufficient precaution be taken and that there is an up-to-date fire prevention strategy at all national museums as well as other precious cultural heritages in Korea!
Choe Chong-dae is a guest columnist of The Korea Times. He is president of Dae-kwang International Co., and director of the Korean-Swedish Association. He can be reached at choecd@naver.com