Editor’s Note
Yuri Mikhailovich Butin(1931~2002) was one of the few Russian Koreanists who had studied the ancient history of Korea. Having spent his youth with Korean immigrants and expatriates in Central Asia, Butin dedicated his professional life to the study of economics and history. Despite being known as an economist, his mid-career path brought him to investigate the history of the first ancient kingdom in Korea: Old Joseon. In the late 70s and early 80s, studying Korean history remained a minor subject in Western academia, however. Butin’s determination to initiate his projects and contributions thus deserve high scholarly appreciation, as well as the gratitude of Korean people in general. His most prominent work, Old Joseon (1982), was translated into Korean and published in 1990. Copies of the first edition quickly ran out, yet a handful of copies remained on the shelves of a few university libraries. At the request of many readers, we contacted Lee Byung-du, the translator of the book, and decided to republish Butin’s masterpiece. After months of reviewing and proofreading, we restored the contents and changed the Chinese pronunciations into Korean ones for better comprehension. We hope that many readers, especially those who have been searching and waiting for this book, will enjoy the culmination of Butin’s academic passion.

July 3, 2019
Aeneas Press