Mosaic of N. Korean leader erected in Pyongyang as part of personality cult

A mosaic depicting North Korean leader Kim Jong-un is being erected at Mangyongdae Revolutionary School in Pyongyang, in this Sept. 19 photo carried by North Korea's official Korean Central News Agency. Yonhap

A mosaic mural depicting North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was erected in Pyongyang, state media reported Tuesday, as North Korea has been bolstering its leader's personality cult.

The North held a ceremony unveiling the mosaic Monday at Mangyongdae Revolutionary School, a school for children of the privileged class, on the occasion of its 75th founding anniversary, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The painting described Kim, wearing a red scarf around his neck, as smiling while being surrounded by students of the school, according to photos carried by the KCNA.

North Korea has set up mosaic murals, mainly made of pieces of colored glass and tiles, for late former leaders Kim Il-sung and Kim Jong-il across the country for propaganda purposes.

North Korea revealed a mosaic mural of Kim Jong-un for the first time in October last year, with a painting depicting him as digging the first shovel of earth at a ceremony to mark the start of the construction of a greenhouse farm in Hamju County. But it marked the first time that the erection of such a mosaic was identified in Pyongyang.

The secretive regime has been accelerating the personality cult for Kim Jong-un by bestowing him with the title "President," which was reserved for his late grandfather. The incumbent leader took power in December 2011 following the sudden death of his father and has cemented his power through a reign of terror. (Yonhap)