Seoul museum traces history of Hangeul typewriters

A new exhibition at the G-Valley Industrial Museum in Seoul traces eight decades of innovation aimed at adapting mechanical keyboards to Hangeul. Opening Friday, the exhibition features more than 40 rare typewriters, archival photographs and vintage media, including a restored replica of the 1914 Lee Won-ik typewriter. Four sections examine competing keyboard designs, the 1969 standardized layouts and modern enthusiast-built machines.

The Lee Won-ik typewriter was created in the United States by modifying a Smith Premier No. 10 typewriter.

The exhibition includes Dr. Kong Byung-woo’s three-set mechanism and Kim Dong-hoon’s five-set model, which competed before standardized layouts were established in 1969.

The museum will host four academic forums on the industrial and cultural impact of keyboard standardization.

The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with last entry at 5:30 p.m., and admission is free.

Published Oct 8, 2026 12:32 pm KST

Updated Oct 8, 2026 1:22 pm KST

A promotional poster for the "Type-writing Machine for Hangeul" exhibition / Courtesy of Seoul Metropolitan Government

Long before digital touchscreens and predictive text algorithms reshaped daily communication, inventors struggled with a complex puzzle: how to fit the intricate structure of the Korean alphabet onto a mechanical keyboard.

Opening Friday at the G-Valley Industrial Museum in Seoul, a new exhibition titled "The Type-Writing Machine for Hangeul" traces eight decades of mechanical innovation behind the Korean script.

The timing is especially symbolic, coinciding with the centennial of both Hangeul Day and the release of the Korean Braille system.

The exhibition explores the evolution from early 20th-century vertical script to modern horizontal layouts, featuring over 40 rare typewriters, archival photographs and vintage media. At the center of the collection is a newly restored replica of the 1914 Lee Won-ik typewriter, widely recognized as the earliest attempt to mechanize Korean writing. Created in the United States by modifying a Smith Premier No. 10 typewriter, the machine laid the groundwork for decades of technological experimentation.

Dr. Kong Byung-woo, Korea's first ophthalmologist and the inventor of the Korean typewriter, types on one of his machines. Yonhap

Visitors can trace the fierce design debates of the mid-20th century across four chronological sections. Highlights include early multiset keyboard variations — such as Dr. Kong Byung-woo’s pioneering three-set mechanism and Kim Dong-hoon’s five-set model — which competed for popularity before the government established official standardized layouts in 1969. The final section showcases custom, modern creations built by contemporary enthusiasts who keep the analog tradition alive.

To complement the display, the museum will host four academic forums exploring the industrial and cultural impact of keyboard standardization.

"The Korean typewriter served as a vital bridge reflecting changes in industrial technology and everyday culture," said Kim Hyun-woo, head of the Economic Policy City Bureau at the Seoul Metropolitan Government. "In the era of artificial intelligence, looking back at analog typewriters offers a chance to rediscover their unique technical value."

Admission is free. The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., with last entry at 5:30 p.m. Further details are available on the official museum website .

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.

首尔G-Valley工业博物馆举办的新展览追溯了八十年来为适应韩文而进行的机械键盘创新历程。展览将于周五开幕，展出超过40台珍稀打字机、档案照片和老式媒体资料，其中包括一台修复后的1914年李元益打字机复制品。展览分为四个部分，分别探讨了各种键盘设计、1969年的标准布局以及现代爱好者自制的打字机。

李元益打字机是在美国通过对史密斯Premier No. 10打字机进行改造而制造的。

展览包括孔炳宇博士的三组机械装置和金东勋的五组模型，它们在 1969 年标准化布局建立之前就已参加过比赛。

博物馆将举办四场关于键盘标准化对工业和文化影响的学术论坛。

博物馆周二至周六上午 10 点至下午 6 点开放，最后入场时间为下午 5:30，免费入场。

发布于2026年10月8日下午12:32（韩国标准时间）

更新于2026年10月8日下午1:22（韩国标准时间）

“韩文打字机”展览宣传海报 / 图片由首尔市政府提供

早在数字触摸屏和预测文本算法改变日常交流之前，发明家们就一直在努力解决一个复杂的难题：如何将韩语字母的复杂结构适配到机械键盘上。

周五，首尔 G-Valley 工业博物馆将举办一场名为“韩文打字机”的新展览，追溯韩文文字背后八十年的机械创新历程。

时机尤其具有象征意义，恰逢韩文日一百周年和韩国盲文系统发布一百周年。

本次展览探索了从20世纪初竖排文字到现代横排文字的演变历程，展出了40余台珍稀打字机、档案照片和老物件。展览的核心是一台新近修复的1914年李元益打字机复制品，这台打字机被广泛认为是韩国最早尝试机械化书写的机器。它由美国工匠在史密斯Premier No. 10打字机的基础上改造而成，为之后数十年的技术实验奠定了基础。

韩国首位眼科医生、韩国打字机发明者孔炳佑博士正在使用他发明的打字机打字。（韩联社）

参观者可以通过四个按时间顺序排列的展区，追溯20世纪中期激烈的键盘设计争论。亮点包括早期的多组键盘变体——例如孔炳宇博士开创性的三组键盘机制和金东勋的五组键盘——这些键盘在1969年政府制定官方标准布局之前曾争夺市场。最后一部分则展示了当代爱好者打造的定制现代键盘，他们致力于传承模拟键盘的传统。

为了配合展览，博物馆将举办四场学术论坛，探讨键盘标准化对工业和文化的影响。

首尔市政府经济政策局局长金贤宇表示：“韩国打字机是反映工业技术和日常文化变迁的重要桥梁。在人工智能时代，回顾模拟打字机为我们提供了一个重新发现其独特技术价值的机会。”

免费入场。博物馆周二至周六上午10点至下午6点开放，最后入场时间为下午5点30分。更多详情请访问博物馆官方网站。

本文由生成式人工智能协助发布，并由《韩国时报》编辑。