The Great Merchant
| The Great Merchant | |
|---|---|
Promotional poster for The Great Merchant
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| Also known as | Merchant Kim Man-deok |
| Genre |
Period drama Romance |
| Written by | Kim Jin-suk Kang Da-young |
| Directed by | Kang Byung-taek Kim Sung-yoon |
| Starring |
Lee Mi-yeon Han Jae-suk Park Sol-mi Ha Seok-jin Go Doo-shim |
| Country of origin | South Korea |
| Original language(s) | Korean |
| No. of episodes | 30 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | Park Ki-ho Yoo Gun-shik |
| Location(s) | Korea |
| Camera setup | Multi-camera |
| Running time | Saturdays and Sundays at 20:40 (KST) |
| Release | |
| Original network | KBS1 |
| Original release | 6 March – 13 June 2010 |
| Chronology | |
| Preceded by | The Reputable Family |
| Followed by | Legend of the Patriots |
| External links | |
| Website | |
The Great Merchant (Hangul: 거상 김만덕; Hanja: 巨商金萬德; RR: Geosang Gim Mandeok; lit. Merchant Kim Man-deok) is a 2010 South Korean historical drama starring Lee Mi-yeon,Han Jae-suk, Park Sol-mi,Ha Seok-jin, and Go Doo-shim. It aired on KBS1 from March 6 to June 13, 2010 on Saturdays and Sundays at 20:40 for 30 episodes.
The series follows the life of Kim Man-deok (1739-1812). Kim was born on Jeju Island. Adopted by the head of a gisaeng house at the age of 12, she became a government gisaeng ― a type of Korean traditional entertainer who is designated and reserved specifically for government officials. After discovering a talent in business and commerce, she later became one of the most successful female merchants on the island.
When Jeju was struck by a deadly famine in 1795 (the 19th year of King Jeongjo, Kim sold all her assets and donated approximately 90% of her money (approximated to be ₩70 billion in today's currency) to save millions of lives. Kim was later praised by numerous scholars and philosophers, which was notable given her background as a gisaeng and the fact that she saved the people of Jeju Island, a place that was considered a place of exile at the time. Kim's heroic deeds were documented in Jeongjo Sillok ("The Annals of King Jeongjo") in 1796, and was even featured as a folktale called Mandeok-jeon ("The Story of Man-deok"). In 1978, a memorial was created for Kim Man-deok on Jeju Island, and annually Jeju Island presents the "Man-deok Award" to two outstanding women in philanthropy.
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