The background that Metal
Printed ¡¸Jikji¡¹ has been kept in Manuscrit Orianteaux of France
National Library is complex.
In MAY 1886, Korea had a Korea-France defence commerce treaty with
France, and in the next year of 1887, the official diplomatic
relations were entered into by ratifying the treaty between Kim
Yoon Sik(1835-1922) and Collin de Plancy(1853-1922). Plancy, who
majored in law in France University and studied Chinese in Eastern
language school had served as the translator of France Legation
for six years from 1877. He had come to Seoul as the first
representative minister in Korea in 1888 and stayed to 1891.
At that time, he collected korean ceramics and old books. He let
Kulang, who had moved to Seoul as the official secretary, classify
them. During the next five years, Plancy who had served in Japan,
continued to collect old books while staying in Korea as a consul
and diplomatic minister in Seoul for ten years from 1896 to 1906
again.
Although the channels that Plancy had collected from are not
clearly known, he seems to have had it at the beginning of 1900s,
judging from circumstances. Most old books that Plancy had
collected from Korea in MAR 1911 went to the National Library of
France at an auction, and Metal Printed ¡¸Jikji¡¹was donated by his
will and kept in the National Library of France, after Henri
Vever(1854-1943), who was a famous jewel seller and old book
collector, had bought it at 180 franc and possessed.
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The story about how Jikji as been kept in France
