Donguibogam Village

Heo Jun was a royal physician of the Joseon court who spent about fifteen years compiling the Donguibogam, finished in 1613 - a twenty-five volume synthesis of Korean and Chinese medical knowledge, organised by symptom rather than by remedy and written partly in hangeul so ordinary readers could use it. UNESCO placed it on the Memory of the World register in 2009 as the first medical text so listed. Sancheong, a mountain county with a long herb-gathering tradition, built this village around him: a museum of the text and of Korean medicine, a reconstructed period clinic and herb market, a hall of herbal exhibits, walking trails through the surrounding hills, and accommodation. There are foot baths and hanbang programmes. It is honestly a themed development rather than a historical site, and it is aimed at domestic visitors interested in traditional medicine.

Highlights

• The Donguibogam museum - the text, its structure and its listing.
• The reconstructed clinic and market - period medical practice staged.
• The herb exhibits - Sancheong's gathering tradition.
• The hill trails - walks in the surrounding mountains.

When to go

April to June and September to November. Closed Mondays. There is a herbal medicine festival in autumn.

Before you go

It is a purpose-built theme village, not a heritage site. Little English. Nothing here is health guidance - the exhibits are historical, and medical questions belong with a qualified practitioner rather than with a display or a stallholder.

Nearby

Jirisan's southern approaches are close; Jinju is about an hour.