Gyeongju National Museum
국립경주박물관
The national museum of Silla. The gold crowns from Geumgwanchong and Cheonmachong, two of the tombs in central Gyeongju, are administered here, as is the Divine Bell of King Seongdeok. After Daereungwon and Cheomseongdae — the tombs and the sky — it is the natural place to come and see what was inside the tombs.
Language
Place information
- Korean name
- 국립경주박물관
- Address
- 186 Iljeong-ro, Gyeongju-si, Gyeongsangbuk-do 38171
- Getting there
- Bus Bus 10 / 11 · Gyeongju National Museum stop (국립경주박물관, Bus 10 and 11)
- Opening hours
- Otherwise 10:00–18:00 (last entry 17:30) Mar–Oct Sat 10:00–20:00 (last entry 19:30)
- Closed
- Jan 1 · Seollal · Chuseok · Mar, Jun, Sep, Dec 2nd Mon of the month (A gallery closure rather than a full one: the exhibition halls close, while the garden and the outdoor exhibition ground stay open.)
- Hours notes
- The Saturday evening extension has been in force since 1 March 2026. Last admission is 30 minutes before closing.
- Admission
- Free
Prices
| Admission | FreeThe permanent galleries, the children's museum and special exhibitions are free. Special exhibitions that charge are excluded. |
|---|
History
After liberation, the Gyeongju branch of the Government-General of Korea Museum was taken over and reopened as the Gyeongju branch of the National Museum on 7 October 1945. After more than six years of construction, the present museum in Inwang-dong opened on 2 July 1975. It was renamed Gyeongju National Museum that August.
Before the new museum opened, the Divine Bell of King Seongdeok was moved from the old museum in Dongbu-dong to the new one in Inwang-dong on 27 May 1975. Gyeongju residents joined in a long procession to help move it. The bell was used as a New Year’s Eve bell until 1998; ringing ceased after 2003 to protect it.
1945
Gyeongju branch opens
After liberation, the former Gyeongju branch of the Government-General of Korea Museum reopened as the Gyeongju branch of the National Museum on 7 October 1945.
May 1975
Divine Bell moved
On 27 May 1975, Gyeongju residents joined a long procession to move the Divine Bell of King Seongdeok from the old museum in Dongbu-dong to the new museum in Inwang-dong.
July 1975
Inwang-dong museum opens
The new museum in Inwang-dong opened on 2 July 1975 after more than six years of construction.
What to see
Divine Bell of King Seongdeok
The Divine Bell of King Seongdeok dates from the seventh year of King Hyegong’s reign in Unified Silla (771) and was designated a National Treasure in 1962.
Museum building
Architect Lee Hee-tae designed the 1975 museum building around a Buddhist pagoda motif, adding elements of Silla roof tiles and the foundation stones of Geunjeongjeon Hall at Gyeongbokgung Palace. Replicas of Bulguksa’s Seokgatap and Dabotap pagodas stand in the rear courtyard.
Wolji hall
Designed by architect Kim Swoo-geun, Wolji hall was built to store and display more than 33,000 artefacts of Unified Silla royal life found during excavations in 1975–76. It was renamed after the Silla-period name ‘Wolji’.
Silla millennium storehouse
The Silla millennium storehouse is an open storehouse that visitors can go inside, watching staff handle artefacts at close range. Its storage racks were built to withstand a magnitude 6.8 earthquake.
Gyeongju children’s museum school
Gyeongju children’s museum school began in 1954 and continues today. The museum describes it as the beginning of museum education in Korea.
Divine Bell of King Seongdeok selected
Nearby
Stories about this place
- Gyeongju in a Day on Foot: Daereungwon to Woljeonggyo
A one-day walking itinerary in Gyeongju, planned around the museum’s last entry first, with the day’s last ticket times for Cheonmachong in Daereungwon and Donggung Palace and Wolji Pond checked as well.
Nearby Food
Related articles
Where these facts come from
- Gyeongju National Museum — visitor information (10:00-18:00, with last admission 30 minutes before closing; evening opening extended to 20:00 on Saturdays from March to October, in force from 1 March 2026; closed 1 January, Seollal and Chuseok, when the outdoor exhibition ground is closed too; galleries also closed on the second Monday of March, June, September and December, while the garden and outdoor grounds stay open; admission free to the permanent galleries, the children's museum and special exhibitions, except those that charge) ·
- Gyeongju National Museum — Directions ·
- Korea Heritage Portal — Divine Bell of King Seongdeok designation and location information ·
- Korea Heritage Service open registry — of the five National Treasures whose names contain 금관, the Geumgwanchong crown and cap ornament, the Geumgwanchong gold belt and the Cheonmachong crown are all administered by Gyeongju National Museum ·
- Gyeongju Culture and Tourism — the 「Bus 10 버스타GO」 route guide. It gives Bus 10's first departure at 06:00 and last at 21:40 from the express/intercity bus terminal, a headway of about 20 minutes, and 35–45 minutes from the terminal to Bulguksa, the turning point, when the bus does not stop in between. For each attraction it publishes the name of the stop to get off at, the stop's ID and the walk from it. Bus 11 runs the same route in the opposite direction, and Bus 10-1 turns back at Gyeongju World rather than reaching Bulguksa. A city bus fare is 1,300 won for an adult, 1,000 for a youth and 700 for a child, 50 won less with a transit card; one transfer is allowed within 30 minutes of alighting and only onto a different route. ·
- Gyeongju National Museum — history (1945 branch opening, 1975 bell move and Inwang-dong opening, the Lee Hee-tae and Kim Swoo-geun buildings, the open storehouse, the 1954 children's school) ·