Korean currency
In 1902, won was introduced as the official currency unit replacing yang at 1 won = 5 yang. The bank of Korea was established 1909 but soon after in 1910, Imperial Japan annexed Korean Empire. Under Colonial rule, the country was made to use the currency unit "yen" in the name of Korean yen, which took over the Korean won at par. After the division of Korea, the state of South Korea was established and recognized in 1948, and won was again made the official currency of the new state. "jeon" was made the subunit of the currency that divided it into 100 equal parts. Bank of Joseon issued the currency for independent South Korea for the first time that too in banknotes only.
Sin Saimdang
Sin Saimdang is the first woman to appear on a South Korean banknote. The Bank of Korea (BOK; Hangul: 한국은행), the 50,000 won note, first issued in June 2009.
The design of the 50,000 won was released on February 25, 2009. A portrait of Shin Saimdang and her drawings, Mook Grapes (Hangul: 묵포도도) and Chochungdosubyeong (Hangul: 초충도수병,South Korean National Treasure No. 595) were illustrated on the front. Paintings ('wolmaedo' and 'pungjugdo') of the Joseon dynasty were illustrated on the back side. Unlike other bills, the illustrations on the back of this bill were illustrated vertically.
On May 5, The Bank of Korea announced that they selected Shin Saimdang main character of 50000won because she is "a representative female artist in the middle of the Joseon period" and "a person who has accomplished a remarkable achievement in gifted education by fulfilling his wife's role". The reason for the selection is that it is expected to contribute to raising awareness of gender equality in Korean society and to raise the importance of education and family. (Other candidate characters of 50,000 won were Kim Koo, Gwanggaeto the Great, Ahn Changho, Jang Yeong-sil, and Ryu Gwansun.)