"Donguibogam," South Korea's traditional book on oriental medicine, has been designated as a world documentary heritage by a United Nations education and cultural body.
The Cultural Heritage Administration said the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) added "Donguibogam," or "Principles and Practice of Eastern Medicine," to its Memory of the World Register at the ninth meeting of the International Advisory Committee held in Barbados.
UNESCO said the book, written by Heo Jun in 1613, a court physician, is an important source of knowledge on treatment techniques and highlights the evolution of medicine in East Asia.
The U.S. agency described Donguibogam as an encyclopedia of medical knowledge and treatment techniques and a precursor to the establishment of a state-led preventive medicine and public health care system in the 19th century, according to Yonhap News Agency.
The South Korean government requested in March last year that UNESCO include it in the Memory of the World Register.
South Korea now has seven documents on the UNESCO-recognized list, the most among Asian countries. China has five.
The Annals of the Joseon Dynasty and the Hunmin Chongum Manuscript were included in 1997, followed by Seungjeongwon Ilji, the Diaries of the Royal Secretariat, in 2001, and the Royal Protocols of the Joseon Dynatsy in 2007.
A total of 193 documents are protected by UNESCO, including 35 newly inserted documents added to the catalog this year, among which are the diaries of Anne Frank of the Netherlands and the Magna Carta 1215 of Britain.