Hyemin Lee (Illustration by Hyemin Lee/Stripes Korea)

Korea has four banknotes, and the faces on them are not presidents, military heroes or independence fighters. All four are figures tied to Joseon-era Confucianism, education and scholarship. The 1,000-won bill features Yi Hwang, one of Joseon’s great Confucian scholars. The 5,000-won bill shows Yi I, another major scholar and philosopher. The 10,000-won bill honors King Sejong the Great, who created Hangul, the Korean alphabet. The 50,000-won bill shows Shin Saimdang, a painter, calligrapher, poet and Confucian educator who raised her son Yi I to be one of Joseon’s greatest scholars. The 5,000-won and 50,000-won bills are a rare mother-and-son pair on Korean currency.

South Korean Won currency (FIle photo)

(Illustration by Stripes Korea)