Tongmunkwan rare book shop, one of only two left in Insadong,once Korea's largest market for antiques, artwork, and rare books.Photo by Shin Dong-yeun for Joongang Daily.Tongmunkwan is a 75-year-old bookstore in the Insadong neighborhood of Seoul, Republic of Korea. A sign in front of the shop reads, “It’s better to pile books than gold.”Not lately.South Korea, which once had a thriving rare and antiquarian book trade, is down to its last fifty rare book shops with more closings on the horizon.According to a recent article in the JoongAng Daily, numerous factors are at work.The reasons are eerily similar to what...
