Former Korean Bank Building

Former Korean Bank Building

The Former Korean Bank Building is a cultural relic protection unit of Tianjin.

Former Korean Bank Building

Era: 1918

Address: No. 97–101, Jiefang North Road, Heping District, Tianjin

Category: Important Modern Historical Site and Representative Architecture

The Korean Bank was a financial institution established in 1911 and controlled by Japan, with its head office located in Keijō (Seoul). The Tianjin branch was established in 1918, with its first manager being a Japanese man named Nozaki. The bank was initially housed in this building. In 1938, it moved to a new building constructed on Xujie (now Heping Road) in the Japanese concession. In 1945, the Nationalist government took over the bank as enemy and puppet property, and the bank ceased operations. Part of this building was also once used by the French-owned Ullmann & Co., a specialty store dealing in jewelry and curios.

The building is bordered by Zhang Zizhong Road to the east, Yingkou Road to the south, Jiefang North Road to the west, and Chengde Road to the north. It has a construction area of 2,000 square meters and is a three-story brick-concrete structure. The main entrance features a hardwood carved door, flanked by more than ten Roman-style columns, using the traditional masonry technique of flush jointing. The upper part of the second floor has overhanging eaves, and the window sills are adorned with bottle-shaped pilasters forming a guardrail-style corridor. The roof is gently sloped, with pediment decorations at the corners. The exterior of the building features French Classical architectural style. The current condition of the building is good.