National Folk Museum of Korea

National Folk Museum of Korea 국립민속박물관
Hangul	국립민속박물관
Hanja	國立民俗博物館
RR	Gungnip Minsok Bangmulgwan
MR	Kungnip Minsok Pangmulgwan
Established	1924
Location	Samcheongdong-gil 35, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Director	Shin Gwang-seop
Website	www.nfm.go.kr

National Folk Museum of Korea is a national museum of South Korea, located within the grounds of the Gyeongbokgung Palace in Jongno-gu, Seoul, and uses replicas of historical objects to illustrate the history of traditional life of the Korean people.

History

The museum was established on 8 November 1945 by the U.S. Government and opened on 25 April 1946 at the City Administration Memorial Hall. When the museum was merged with National Museum of Korea, its collection of 4,555 artifacts was moved to the latter's Mt Namsan site. In 1975, when the National Museum moved onto the grounds of Gyeongbokgung Palace, it moved along with it into the Modern Art Museum Building. In 1993 it opened in its present site, which was the former site of the National Museum of Korea. The building's design is based on various historical buildings around South Korea.^[1]

Collection

The museum has three main exhibition halls, with over 98,000 artifacts: History of Korean People features materials of everyday life in Korea from prehistoric times to the end of the Joseon Dynasty in 1910; Korean Way of Life, which illustrates Korean villagers in ancient times; and Life Cycle of the Koreans, which depicts the deep roots of Confucianism in Korean culture and how this ideology gave rise to most of the culture's customs.

The museum also features open-air exhibits, such as replicas of spirit posts where villagers used to pray, stone piles for worship, grinding mills, rice storage shelters and pits for kimchi pots. ^[2]

See also

• History of Korea
• List of museums in Seoul
• List of museums in South Korea

References

1. ^ NFMK History: The National Folk Museum of Korea Retrieved 2011-11-04
2. ^ CNN Go Seoul's best museums 27 October 2011. Retrieved 2011-11-04

External links

• Official website (English)