Former Yongsan Seminary and Wonhyoro Sacred Heart Church

On a hill above Wonhyo-ro in Yongsan, Seoul, stand Korea's first purpose-built seminary (1892) and its chapel (1902). Both were designed and supervised by the French missionary Father Eugène Coste, and their red brick and pointed-arch windows have survived unchanged for more than 120 years. The site is also a Catholic shrine, as the remains of St Andrew Kim Dae-geon were kept here for about 50 years.

A hill overlooking the martyrs' grounds

The Sacred Heart Seminary opened in 1885 in Yeoju, Gyeonggi Province, and moved here to Yongsan in 1887, as restrictions on Catholicism were gradually easing. At first the students lived and studied in traditional hanok houses. The hill had once been the site of Hambyeokjeong, a pavilion overlooking the Han River, and from here you could see Saenamteo, where priests were executed in the persecution of 1866, and Danggogae, where many believers died in the persecution of 1839.

The foundation stone was laid in May 1891, and the building was blessed on 25 June 1892, the feast of the Sacred Heart, the seminary's patron. After the seminary moved to Hyehwa-dong in 1928, the building served as a retreat house for priests and then as a hospital branch. In 1956, when the Society of the Sacred Heart arrived in Korea, the sisters took it over.

The two buildings

• Former Yongsan Seminary: A brick building with a semi-basement and two upper floors. The entrance and the basement door sit in the centre, flanked by stairs leading up to the first-floor entrance. It was built by Chinese craftsmen. Parts were extended later, but most of the original structure remains.
• Wonhyoro Sacred Heart Church: Built on the slope, it has three storeys when seen from below on the south side and two from the convent side. The main door is set off to one side, which gives the building an asymmetrical look. Inside there is only an altar and pews, but the pointed-arch windows and the small spire on the roof give it a simplified Gothic character.
• Stained glass: The central stained-glass window catches your eye as soon as you enter. The French glass artist Brother Marco added further glass to the side walls and the back of the upper floor, so the colours inside change as the sun moves.

The two buildings were designated a single Historic Site in 1977. In 2012 they were re-designated separately as the Yongsan Seminary and the Wonhyo-ro Sacred Heart Church.

Father Coste and St Andrew Kim

Father Coste, the Paris Foreign Missions priest who designed both buildings, also worked on the designs of Myeongdong Cathedral and Yakhyeon Church in Seoul. At a time when Western brick construction was almost unknown in Korea, he built in brick together with Chinese craftsmen and helped set the pattern for the country's early churches. The two buildings on the Yongsan hill are a rare case where both a seminary and a church from his hand survive side by side.

The site also matters as the place where the remains of St Andrew Kim Dae-geon, Korea's first native priest, were kept. They were kept here for about 50 years, and pilgrims still come for that reason. Both buildings are registered Catholic shrines.

Tripto tips

• Opening hours: Weekends only, 09:00–17:00. The buildings stand on school grounds and are closed on weekdays for student safety. Admission is free and parking is available.
• Etiquette: The sisters still use the site for worship. Keep quiet and do not take photos during Mass or prayers.
• Time needed: 30 minutes to an hour for both buildings.
• Getting there: It is about 800 m in a straight line from Hyochang Park Station (Line 6 and Gyeongui–Jungang Line), and easy to combine with Hyochang Park.
• Information: +82-2-701-5501.