A South Korean film crew has found a manuscript of an ancient letter that was sent from a pope to a king of the Goryeo Dynasty in 1333 at the Vatican.

In the letter written in Latin, Pope John XXII said that he was pleased to know King Chungsuk was treating Christians well.

The letter hints that priests had visited Goryeo 261 years before Spanish Catholic priest Gregorio de Cespedes visited the Joseon Kingdom in 1594.

A former South Korean ambassador to the Vatican said that the discovery is very surprising as the letter indicates there had already been cultural and diplomatic exchanges between Korea and Europe at that time.

The papal letter indicates that such exchanges started before the Jikji, or "Anthology of Great Buddhist Priests’ Zen Teachings," the world's oldest book printed with movable metal type, which was published in 1377 during the Goryeo Dynasty.