Jejungwon, Korea's first Western-style hospital, looks like this?
Sep 15, 2025
Yonsei University Medical Center (Director Lee Chi-chang) has introduced a set of history blocks to mark the 140th anniversary of the opening of Jejungwon, Korea's first Western-style hospital. This project was created in collaboration with a toy company, Oxford, and elaborately reproduced Jejungwon, the root of Severance Hospital, as a block model.
The size of this model is 43cm wide, 33cm long, and 9cm high, and it is a total of 634 pieces of components that can be easily assembled by those aged 8 or older. By faithfully reflecting the exterior and structure of Jejungwon's building, you can experience the beginning and historical value of modern Korean medical care. It also includes figures of Dr. Allen, the first president of Jejungwon, Dr. Evison, who built the foundation for Severance Hospital and Yonsei University today, and Louis Severance, an American philanthropist.
The Jejungwon block reproduces the detailed design of tiles, wooden bars, pillars, and eaves, and expresses its characteristics as a modern hospital building. The internal space symbolically embodies major medical spaces such as surgery rooms, medical offices, and operating rooms, so that children and parents who make blocks can easily understand the structure of the hospital. The production manual also includes a character introduction to Allen, Evison and Severance, who are embodied in figures, along with the history of the Jejungwon.
"Jejungwon is the beginning of Korean Western medicine beyond just hospitals, and it is an important legacy that contains the history of Yonsei University and Severance Hospital," said Choi Ki-chang, head of Yonsei University Medical Center. Through the creation of this historical block, we hope to publicize the founding spirit and tradition of Jejungwon and share its value with the people," he said.
Meanwhile, this Jejungwon block is a non-sale product and will be provided as a souvenir to those who participated in the fundraising of the 「Jejungwon Brand Development Fund」 recently created by Yonsei Medical Center. Yonsei Medical Center's 'Jejungwon Brand Development Fund' sheds light on the value of Korea's modern medical cultural heritage and will be used for various activities to record and preserve the history from Jejungwon to Yonsei Medical Center today.
The size of this model is 43cm wide, 33cm long, and 9cm high, and it is a total of 634 pieces of components that can be easily assembled by those aged 8 or older. By faithfully reflecting the exterior and structure of Jejungwon's building, you can experience the beginning and historical value of modern Korean medical care. It also includes figures of Dr. Allen, the first president of Jejungwon, Dr. Evison, who built the foundation for Severance Hospital and Yonsei University today, and Louis Severance, an American philanthropist.
The Jejungwon block reproduces the detailed design of tiles, wooden bars, pillars, and eaves, and expresses its characteristics as a modern hospital building. The internal space symbolically embodies major medical spaces such as surgery rooms, medical offices, and operating rooms, so that children and parents who make blocks can easily understand the structure of the hospital. The production manual also includes a character introduction to Allen, Evison and Severance, who are embodied in figures, along with the history of the Jejungwon.
"Jejungwon is the beginning of Korean Western medicine beyond just hospitals, and it is an important legacy that contains the history of Yonsei University and Severance Hospital," said Choi Ki-chang, head of Yonsei University Medical Center. Through the creation of this historical block, we hope to publicize the founding spirit and tradition of Jejungwon and share its value with the people," he said.
Meanwhile, this Jejungwon block is a non-sale product and will be provided as a souvenir to those who participated in the fundraising of the 「Jejungwon Brand Development Fund」 recently created by Yonsei Medical Center. Yonsei Medical Center's 'Jejungwon Brand Development Fund' sheds light on the value of Korea's modern medical cultural heritage and will be used for various activities to record and preserve the history from Jejungwon to Yonsei Medical Center today.
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This article was translated by Naver AI translator.
