South Korean scholars have highlighted the significance of the country’s oldest historical educational institution, papers showed Wednesday, as the Seoul city government pushes to list it as a UNESCO world cultural heritage site.

The foremost education institution during the Joseon era (1392-1910), Sungkyunkwan, has been keeping the ritual called “Seokjeon” alive at the Confucian shrine Munmyo on the grounds of what is now Sungkyunkwan University in central Seoul, said professor Chang Jae-cheon at Yongin University, located just south of the capital.

“Sungkyunkwan and Munmyo, with more than a thousand years of history, should be added on the world heritage list and protected accordingly,” he said.

Some scholars date the origin of the historic institution back to before the Joseon era, though it is widely agreed to have been established at the current site in 1398.

The remarks are part of a discussion paper to be released during a symposium later this week, organized by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, which aims to build academic grounds for the UNESCO listing.

In 2014, the city government first announced its goal to add Sungkyunkwan and Munmyo to the list, along with other Confucian shrines in China and Vietnam.

Jo Sang-sun at the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage said the Confucian shrines in South Korea, China and Vietnam hold high architectural value.

“The buildings embody natural changes that came as time went by,” the researcher said. “It is necessary to establish a reasonable management plan to protect them.”

The details of the scholars’ papers will be released at the academic forum which will take place at the Korea Press Foundation on Friday.

“With the symposium as the beginning, we will accelerate our plan to add Sungkyunkwan and Munmyo on the cultural heritage list,” a city official said, asking not to be named. “We will also discuss the plan with China and Vietnam along the way.” (Yonhap)