National Museum of Korea

The National Museum of Korea is the country's flagship museum of history and art, covering everything from prehistory to the Korean Empire under one roof. Its collection runs to more than 310,000 objects, with about 15,000 on display at any time. Around 3.8 million people visited in the first half of 2026 alone, making it one of Seoul's busiest cultural venues.

History: a museum that kept moving

Its roots go back to the Imperial Household Museum that Emperor Sunjong opened at Changgyeonggung Palace in 1909. The national museum was founded right after liberation in 1945, and during the Korean War about 20,000 objects were evacuated to Busan. After stints at Gyeongbokgung and Deoksugung it took its current name in 1972, when its main building went up north-east of Gyeongbokgung (it now houses the National Folk Museum). It then moved in 1986 into the former Japanese Government-General Building, and had to move again when that building was demolished in 1995, temporarily into what is now the National Palace Museum. Planning for the Yongsan site began in 1993, but the opening was delayed repeatedly because of a helipad on the land. The total floor area is about 295,551 m².

The present building in Yongsan opened on 28 October 2005, on land that had been a golf course of the US Army's Yongsan Garrison and was returned to Korea in 1992 as Yongsan Family Park. It was built to withstand a magnitude-6.0 earthquake, and the display cases sit on shock-absorbing platforms. The main building is split into east and west wings over six floors plus a basement. The Gyeongcheonsa pagoda, threatened outdoors by acid rain and weathering, was dismantled in 1995 and re-erected indoors in the "Path to History" for the 2005 opening.

What to see

• Gyeongcheonsa Ten-Story Pagoda: the marble pagoda standing in the indoor "Path to History", erected in 1348 under the Goryeo dynasty. It was illegally taken to Japan in 1907 and returned in 1918. Look closely at the Buddhist carvings on each storey.
• Room of Quiet Contemplation: a gallery for just two National Treasures, the gilt-bronze pensive bodhisattvas, opened in November 2021. Designed by architect Choi Wook, the 24-metre room has no labels, only sloping walls, soft light and the two smiling figures.
• Sculpture and Crafts Gallery: rooms for ceramics, metalwork and Buddhist sculpture, with Goryeo celadon, buncheong ware and Joseon white porcelain. Look for the Joseon "moon jar" and inlaid celadon vases designated as Treasures.
• Calligraphy and Painting Gallery: home to works such as the Album of Genre Paintings by Danwon (a Treasure), in which the 18th-century painter Kim Hong-do captured ordinary people's lives with humour; all 25 scenes focus on the figures, with no background.
• Prehistory and Ancient History Gallery: the beginnings of Korean history. The museum's ancient treasures include the 5th-century Silla gold crown (a National Treasure) from the Hwangnamdaechong tomb in Gyeongju.
• World Culture and Donation galleries: rooms for Mesopotamia, Central Asia, India and South-East Asia, China and Japan, plus galleries of private donations.

Good to know

• In 2021 the museum opened a small branch airside at Incheon International Airport, in front of Gate 22, worth a look before your flight.
• By floor area it is one of the largest museum buildings in the world.
• The lack of labels in the Room of Quiet Contemplation is deliberate: the idea is simply to look.
• The gold crown from the north mound of Hwangnamdaechong was found with a silver belt ornament inscribed "Buindae" ("madam's belt"), which suggests the tomb belonged to a woman.
• The museum holds the Oegyujanggak Uigwe, illustrated records of Joseon royal ceremonies once kept in the royal library annex King Jeongjo set up on Ganghwa Island in 1782. The Joseon royal protocols are on UNESCO's Memory of the World register.

Tripto tips

• Opening hours: since 16 March 2026, 09:30–17:30, and until 21:00 on Wednesdays and Saturdays. Hours are sometimes extended in peak season.
• Closed: 1 January, Seollal (Lunar New Year) and Chuseok days.
• Admission: the permanent galleries have so far been free, but paid admission and online booking are being planned, so check the official website before you go. Special exhibitions may charge separately.
• Getting there: take exit 2 of Ichon Station (Line 4 and Gyeongui–Jungang Line) and follow the underground "Museum Nadeul-gil" walkway to the West Gate. The walkway is open 07:00–23:00.
• Time needed: two hours for the highlights, half a day or more to do it properly. If your days are full, use the Wednesday and Saturday late openings.
• The museum stands inside Yongsan Family Park, so a walk in the park makes an easy follow-up.