Korean name | |
---|---|
Hangul | 국립고궁박물관 |
Hanja | 國立古宮博物館 |
Revised Romanization | Guknip Gogung bakmulgwan |
McCune–Reischauer | Kuknip Kokung pakmulkwan |
Established | September 1908 |
Location | Sajikno 34 (Sejongno), Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea |
Director | Soh Jae-gu |
Website | gogung.go.kr |
National Palace Museum of Korea is a national museum of South Korea located in Gyeongbokgung Palace, Seoul.
The museum first began as the "Korean Imperial Museum", which was established in September 1908 and was originally located in Changgyeonggung Palace. On November of the following year, the museum was opened to the public. However, on April, 1938, the ruling Japanese government renamed the museum to the "Museum of Yi dynasty".
In March, 1946, after the liberation of Korea, it was renamed "Deoksugung Museum". In 1991, Cultural Heritage Administration instituted the museum in Seokjojeon (석조전, Stone Hall) of Deoksugung Palace, and in 2005, the museum was relocated to a modern building inside Gyeongbokgung Palace.
National Palace Museum of Korea houses over 40,000 artifacts and royal treasures, from the palaces of the Joseon Dynasty and the Korean Empire, of which 14 are National Treasures of South Korea. It displays records, state rites, architecture, clothing, royal life, education, culture, paintings and music of the dynasty’s ruling era. It also has among its collection the royal seal of King Gojong of Joseon, which was used for his personal letters to Russian czar and Italian emperor after 1903. It disappeared during Japanese rule and was re-covered from a US-based Korean collector in 2009.