Seoul cultural jewel, Namdaemun gate, restored five years after fire

Five years after an arsonist burned it down in a spectacular blaze, South Korea yesterday unveiled its newly restored Namdaemun gate, a national treasure painstakingly rebuilt at a cost of millions of dollars.

The cultural jewel in central Seoul will reopen to the public on Saturday, following one of the longest and most expensive restoration projects undertaken in South Korea, involving hundreds of highly skilled craftsmen.

"Using traditional methods and materials, we've done our best to restore it to its original state," said Kang Kyung-hwan, head of the government's Heritage Conservation Bureau.

Seoul's 600-year-old Namdaemun (South Gate) is listed as "National Treasure Number One" and a source of immense cultural pride.

The largely wooden structure, which survived the devastation of the 1950-53 Korean war, was reduced to ashes by a disgruntled 69-year-old man with some paint thinner and a cigarette lighter on February 10, 2008.