Ahn Jung-geun Handwriting Piece Returns to Korea After Selling for $1 Million

Approximately USD 1 million dollars was the winning bid for an undisclosed handwriting piece by Korean independence activist Ahn Jung-geun at a recent auction in Seoul. The bidding started at about $380,000. The auction price went up as bidders raised the asking price. When the auction price exceeded the original estimate and reached about $1 million, there was only one paddle left. Finally, it was sold for the second-highest price among Ahn’s handwriting, following one that recorded the record price (about $1.46 million) in December of last year.

With this recent sale, the handwriting piece has returned to Korea after 114 years. Ahn Jung-geun wrote the piece in the Rushun Prison after he assassinated Ito Hirobumi, a key figure in Japanese imperialism, in 1910. He left more than 200 pieces in prison at the time. The newly auctioned handwriting has the meaning of “a person’s mind changes from morning to evening, but the color of the mountain remains the same as before.” It can be interpreted as comparing his feelings for independence to the color of mountains.

Extraordinarily, the new owner of the painting was also disclosed. Hanmi Semiconductor, a Korean semiconductor company, won the bid. The company was founded by the late chairman Kwak Roh-kwon, a descendant of Korean independence activist Kwak Han-so. “Hanmi Semiconductor joined the effort to recover the handwriting of Ahn to support Kwak’s will, who passed away in December last year as a descendant of an independence activist,” Seoul Auction said.

As a result, Ahn’s handwriting returned to Korea. Another handwriting piece returned after an auction in December of last year, thanks to Kim Woong-ki, chairman of the Global Seah Group. He purchased that handwriting piece for about $1.46 million. Both works were reportedly owned by the Japanese before they were auctioned off in Korea. Japanese officials, who came to respect Ahn for his steadfast courage in the Rushun Prison, asked him for his handwriting and handed it over to his descendants, so they stayed in Japan.

Ahn’s handwriting is evaluated as excellent handwriting. His handwriting clearly reveals his high spirit, fidelity, and aspiration for independence of his country. Of the more than 200 handwriting known to have been left by Ahn, the Ahn Jung-geun Memorial Hall officially recognizes 57 of them, and 31 of them are registered as state-designated cultural treasures. The recent relocation is also meaningful in that it was made before the anniversary of Ahn’s death on March 26.

At the same time, the painting Seowonajipdo by artist Yoo Woon-hong during the Joseon Dynasty, which received attention for its return to Korea, also found a new owner in Korea for about $103,000. It was returned to Korea from Canada.