GERMAN MUSEUM LAUNCHES KOREAN AUDIO GUIDE

[Anchor Lead]

The Gutenberg Museum in Germany, known for its magnificent collection of the world print culture, has launched a Korean audio guide service. Korean-speaking visitors can now learn about the legacy of print culture in Korean.

[Pkg]

The Gutenberg Bible printed with the first western movable metal type... The copy of the Goryeo-era Buddhist document "Jikji Simche Yojeol" printed some seven decades earlier than the GutenbergBible... Prayers from Koran, the holy book of Islam, printed in Egypt in the 15th century... Founded in 1900 to mark Gutenberg's 500th birthday, the Gutenberg Museum has a large collection of the world print culture. Now, these priceless relics can be appreciated in Korean. The museum introduced a Korean audio guide service.

[Soundbite] (KOREAN AUDIO GUIDE) : "The Gutenberg Bible is also called "the 42-line Bible" because each page consists of 42 lines."

Audio guide services used to be available only in German, English, and French. And now Korean visitors can learn about the history of print culture in their native language. The service is provided free of charge.

[Soundbite] MOON JUNG-KYUN(KOREAN RESIDING IN GERMANY) : "I can understand it perfectly now. Even though I'm fluent in German, it's not my native language, so I end up misunderstanding some parts."

The Gutenberg Museum plans to promote exhibition exchanges with Korean museums in the future.

[Soundbite] ANNETTE LUDWIG(CURATOR, GUTENBERG MUSEUM) : "We want to repay Korea for its academic influence on Germany. I hope we will be able to hold exchanges this way."

The Gutenberg Museum is the first German museum to introduce a Korean audio guide service. More such efforts are needed to help grant Koreans easier access to world cultural heritage.