Rows of traditional Korean onggi jars removed in Seoul
In the Haebangchon neighborhood of Seoul, South Korea, rows of traditional Korean earthenware onggi jars that had stood along a wall near the entrance to the area for about four decades were removed this week. The display outside the Hanshin Onggi shop was an unofficial landmark of Haebangchon and a popular photo spot, Korea Herald reports.
Land use fee
Hanshin Onggi, which has operated in Haebangchon since 1967, began removing the jars on Monday. The shop’s owner, Yoon Yoo Jin, told the publication that the store had received a notice from authorities requiring it to pay a land use fee for five years. According to her, the shop had no choice but to remove the jars after that.
Yoon Yoo Jin is the younger daughter-in-law of Hanshin Onggi founder Shin Young Geun. She has run the shop since the founder’s death in December 2024.
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A street display for decades
Shin Young Geun began displaying onggi along the wall of a neighboring U.S. military base after her husband’s death in 1982. She sought to make the ceramic ware more visible to passersby while raising six children and continuing the family business.
In an Instagram post, Yoon Yoo Jin said that the “jar street” had been loved by foreigners who returned to the neighborhood decades later, elderly residents, and young people who had previously known nothing about onggi. The Yongsan-gu district administration told Korea Herald that it had not been aware of the situation.
