Currency Museum of Korea

Inside Daedeok Science Town in Daejeon, the Currency Museum of Korea was opened in 1988 by the Korea Minting and Security Printing Corporation (KOMSCO), the company that actually makes the country's money. It was Korea's first museum devoted to currency. You can follow money from Goryeo coins to the notes in your wallet and learn how to spot a fake. Admission and parking are free, so it pairs easily with the National Science Museum next door.

A museum run by the mint

The museum opened on 22 June 1988. KOMSCO runs it as a non-profit public service, and the collection numbers around 120,000 items, including Korean and foreign coins and notes, commemorative coins and stamps. It took part in the 1993 Daejeon Expo with its own pavilion and passed four million visitors in 2015.

Four permanent galleries

• Gallery 1, Coins: from commodity money to Chinese knife and spade money, the Goryeo Geonwon Jungbo, known as the oldest surviving Korean coin, and the Joseon Sangpyeong Tongbo, with a reconstructed casting scene. There is also the Daedong silver coin from King Gojong's reign and a German-made press once used to strike modern coins.
• Gallery 2, Banknotes: the story of Korean paper money from the 1902 notes of Japan's Dai-Ichi Bank through Bank of Chosen notes to today's Bank of Korea notes. Models and video explain how KOMSCO makes banknote paper from cotton, how watermarks work and how notes are printed.
• Gallery 3, Anti-counterfeiting: compare real and fake notes and explore each security feature on a giant model of the 50,000-won note. A machine lets you check whether the notes in your pocket are genuine.
• Gallery 4, Special products: stamps, Christmas seals, medals and state decorations made by KOMSCO, plus money from 72 countries arranged by continent.

A special exhibition room on the ground floor hosts changing shows.

With children

The galleries run in chronological order, so a visit works like a lesson in the history of money. There is a hands-on space about how currency is produced, and the website offers a VR gallery and online exhibitions to preview the museum. Educational programmes run in school holidays; in summer 2026 they included a trip to KOMSCO's minting headquarters in Gyeongsan. Sign up through the website.

Size of the museum

The site covers 13,872 m², with 2,026 m² of exhibition building. Much of the collection, including some 80 types of commemorative coins and many stamps, was produced by KOMSCO itself, so alongside the money you can follow how printing and minting technology has changed, which sets it apart from other currency displays.

Tripto tips

• Hours: 10:00–17:00; closed on Mondays, 1 January, the Seollal and Chuseok holidays and government-designated temporary holidays.
• Tickets and booking: admission and parking are free. Individuals and families can walk in; groups of 10 or more must book ahead.
• Time needed: allow 1 to 1.5 hours for all four galleries, longer with children who enjoy the hands-on machines in Gallery 3.
• Getting there: take Daejeon Metro Line 1 to Government Complex Station, Exit 3, change to bus 604, get off at the Korea Institute of Nuclear Safety stop and walk about 10 minutes. Routes can change, so check before you go. The museum faces KAIST's east gate.
• Combine with: the National Science Museum and Expo Science Park are right next door, making an easy half-day of museums.