North Korea has issued stamps featuring four historic Korean figures. Clockwise from top left are Yang Man-chun, Choi Mu-seon, Baek Seon-haeng and Nam I. KCNA-Yonhap

By Jung Da-min

North Korea recently issued a set of stamps showing four historic Korean figures, the state-run Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) reported on Saturday.

The Korean Stamp Corporation released the four stamps. They feature Yang Man-chun, a general of Goguryeo (37 B.C.-A.D. 668); Nam I, a general of the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1910); Choi Mu-soen, inventor of gunpowder and gunpowder weapons of the late Goryeo (918-1392) and early Joseon dynasties; and Baek Seon-haeng, a patriotic business woman known for her philanthropy during the Japanese colonial era (1910-1945).

The four figures are well known in South Korea but the two Koreas differ in explaining historical details such as years or places. The KCNA report stated that Goguryeo was founded in 277 B.C. and Choi Mu-seon was born in 1326 while South Korea states it as 1325. While it is known in the South that Baek was born in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, and later moved to Pyongyang, North Korean media did not mention her birthplace.