East Asian History of Science Library
Our collection of Korean books is an excellent example of the way in
which
donations have significantly enhanced the Library. In the course of his
researches
into the history of China’s scientific heritage Dr. Joseph Needham
(1900-1995)
became increasingly interested in aspects of Korea’s pre-modern
scientific
and technological development. These culminated in the publication of
The
Hall of Heavenly Records : Korean astronomical instruments and clocks,
1380-1780
(Cambridge University Press, 1986). His contacts with Korean scholars
working
on the history of science also led to the addition of a small number
Korean
books and journals to his growing library. These included reprints of
primary
works in Korean and secondary research (in both Korean and English).
In the early 1990’s, the Korean collection received a major boost, with
a
generous donation of books from the Korean History of Science Society
purchased
with a grant from the Daewoo Foundation. This donation included
reference
works, monographs, the Shil’lok 朝鮮王朝實錄 and parts of the
important collection
of primary texts Hanguk Kwahak Kisul Sa Jaryo Taekye (Chunmun
Pyun,
Euihak Pyun) 韓國科學技術史資料大系 （天文篇，醫學篇）.
More recently, several developments have led to the further, major
enhancements
of the collection. A leading Korean historian of science has made a
grant
to the Library specifically for the purchase of books on the history of
science
in East Asia in the 20th Century. These include books in Korean,
Japanese,
and Western languages.
In 2003, the Korea Foundation, who have for many years
supported the library
with small donations of books, made a large donation to the Library
that
included important reprints of pre-modern texts relevant to the history
of
science, and most especially the 200 volume Hanguk Munjip Chonggan
韓國文集叢刊 and 40 volume Chungbo Munhun Bigo 增補文獻備考 .
In 2004, The Korean Society for the History of Mathematics
presented the Library
with a set of the mathematics section (SuhakPyun 數學篇 ) of
the Hanguk Kwahak
Kisul Sa Jaryo Taekye 韓國科學技術史資料大係, thus completing
the set. They also
gave us a run of their journal Korean Journal for History of
Mathematics (Hanguk Suhaksa Hakhoichi)
[I am very grateful to Professor Hong Sung Sa for arranging this].
Other recent additions also include the CD-ROM version of the Buddhist
Tripitika
Koryo Taechangkyung 高麗大藏經 , works on traditional
Korean medicine presented
by the Korean Institute of Oriental Medicine in Daejon, and a
set of Ph.d
dissertations on the history of Korean science from Seoul NationalUniversity.
As a result, the Library now has about 1000 volumes of Korean books
that
constitute an excellent basic collection and a unique resourse in the
UK
for scholars to pursue research on the history of Korean science,
technology
and medicine, and we hope to continue this development.