National Museum of Korea
국립중앙박물관
Two closure rules, not one, and they are not the same thing: the museum itself shuts on only three days a year, while the permanent galleries take a quarterly Monday off with the garden still open. Wednesday and Saturday run to 21:00 — the only evenings you can see this place without daylight pressure.
Language
Place information
- Korean name
- 국립중앙박물관
- Address
- 137 Seobinggo-ro, Yongsan-gu, Seoul 04383
- Opening hours
- Mon·Tue·Thu·Fri·Sun 09:30–17:30 (last entry 17:00) Wed·Sat 09:30–21:00 (last entry 20:30) Outdoor exhibition garden 07:00–22:00
- Closed
- Jan 1 · Seollal · Chuseok
- Hours notes
- The permanent galleries and Special Exhibition Halls 1-2 close on the first Monday of March, June, September and December - 1 June, 7 September and 7 December in 2026, with no March closure. For the summer opening of 27 July - 17 August 2026 the museum runs longer at both ends: 09:00-18:00 with last entry 17:30, and 09:00-21:00 on Wednesday and Saturday with last entry 20:30. On the scheduled rest days the permanent and special exhibition halls close but the outdoor exhibition ground opens as normal. Whether it opens on the full closure days is not stated by the operator.
- Booking
- Children's Museum required Admitted by timed session, booked in advance.
- Time needed
- Half day
- Admission
- Free
Prices
| Admission | FreeCovers the permanent galleries, the Children's Museum and free special exhibitions. Ticketed special exhibitions are bought separately. |
|---|
What to see
Photo 1 of 3
Prehistory and Ancient History Gallery
Photograph: Gold crown and gold belt (Silla room)Photograph: Gilt-bronze Goguryeo crown (Goguryeo room)Photograph: Pottery horse and rider (Silla room)
First floor. A chronological run from the Palaeolithic, when people first lived on the peninsula, to the period when Unified Silla and Balhae stood alongside each other.
Gary Todd (Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0)
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Medieval and Early Modern History Gallery
Photograph: Gyeongguk daejeon (first Joseon room)Photograph: Jade seal of Emperor Gojong (Korean Empire room)
First floor, the north side: Goryeo, Joseon and the Korean Empire, arranged so the documents of each are legible to a visitor.
猫猫的日记本 (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0) · 국립중앙박물관 (Wikimedia Commons, KOGL Type 1)
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Calligraphy and Painting Gallery
Photograph: Kim Jeong-hui's Buliseonrando (calligraphy and painting room)Photograph: Portrait of Yi Hu-won (calligraphy and painting room)
Second floor. Calligraphy and painting, Buddhist painting, and lacquered woodwork — the part of the tradition carried by line and colour.
김정희 (Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain) · 작자 미상 (Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain)
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Donations Gallery
Photograph: Bronze helmet given by Sohn Kee-chung (first donation room)Photograph: Maharatnakuta Sutra vol. 59, first Tripitaka Koreana edition (third donation room)
Second floor. Heritage given to the museum, shown in honour of the people who gave it.
국립중앙박물관 (Wikimedia Commons, KOGL Type 1)
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Room of Quiet Contemplation
Photograph: Gilt-bronze pensive bodhisattva (National Treasure 78)Photograph: Gilt-bronze pensive bodhisattva (National Treasure 83)
Second floor. The room where the two National Treasure pensive bodhisattvas stand side by side.
국립중앙박물관 (Wikimedia Commons, KOGL Type 1)
Photo 1 of 3
Sculpture and Crafts Gallery
Photograph: Celadon incense burner with openwork design (celadon room)Photograph: Celadon melon-shaped bottle (celadon room)Photograph: White porcelain jar with plum and bamboo in iron underglaze (buncheong and white porcelain room)
Third floor. Korean Buddhist sculpture, Goryeo celadon and Joseon white porcelain, and metalwork.
국립중앙박물관 (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0) · 국립중앙박물관 (Wikimedia Commons, KOGL Type 1)
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World Art Gallery
Photograph: Pranidhi scene (Central Asia room)Photograph: Pranidhi scene from Bezeklik Cave 33 (Central Asia room)
Third floor. China, Japan, Central Asia, India and Southeast Asia.
Gary Todd (Wikimedia Commons, CC0 1.0) · Richard Mortel (Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0)
Prehistory and Ancient History Gallery selected
Visiting rules
- PhotographyAllowed with conditions
- No flash, tripod, selfie stick or gimbal, and no commercial photography
- National Museum of Korea — visitor information ·
Nearby
Won Daegutang
A cod soup house of more than thirty years, serving the offal, clear and head variants beside the standard bowl.
War Memorial of Korea
Closes at 17:40, not 18:00, and stops admitting visitors at 17:00 — a 40-minute gap that catches people who arrive after an afternoon elsewhere. Closed Mondays, and when a holiday falls on a Monday the closure moves to the day after, which is the rule most itineraries miss.
Ichon Hangang Park
A 10.2 km stretch of the north bank from Jungnangcheon Bridge at Geumho-dong to Mancheoncheon Bridge at Ichon-dong. Nodeulseom, the island under Hangang Bridge, is listed among this district's facilities — and the operator notes separately that the island's 120,462 m² is not counted in the park's own 922,185 m². The inline skating rink here covers 14,602 m², with a 400 m road track and a 200 m banked track.
G Guesthouse
A guesthouse on Bogwang-ro 60-gil, its facade covered in graffiti of city names from around the world, with a rooftop looking over N Seoul Tower and Itaewon. In the drama it appears as a gosiwon.
Frequently asked questions
Can I take my bag into the galleries?
Backpacks and school bags have to go in the first-floor lockers. Since 11 June 2024 there is also a security screening point at the entrance.
Can I just walk into the Children's Museum?
No — it runs on timed reservations. From 18 August it is open 09:30–17:20 daily; during the summer period (28 July – 17 August) it runs 09:10–18:00.
Stories about this place
- The National Museum of Korea: A Museum That Kept Moving
It began in a palace in 1908, was run by the colonial government, lost thousands of objects to bombing, evacuated 20,000 more to Busan, and has had six addresses. Its own history is a short course in modern Korea.
- Four Major Museums in Seoul, Compared
The National Museum of Korea, the War Memorial, Seodaemun Prison History Hall and Leeum compared on what each holds, where it is, when it closes and what it costs. Three sit in Yongsan and pair easily into one day; only one charges admission.
Nearby Food
- Five Seoul Korean Barbecue Restaurants: Hanwoo, Galbi, Bulgogi and Pork Belly
- What the broth is made of — eight Seoul houses, seven different bases
- Northern Korean Food in Seoul: Naengmyeon, Eobok-jaengban, Mandu and Kongbiji
- Seven Seoul houses that open for breakfast — before eight in the morning
- Six Seoul houses that make the noodle by hand — kalguksu, guksi, sujebi
- Enjoying Seoul's Cafe Culture
Travel Guides
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- Kingdom Seoul Palace Filming Route — Three Palaces and a Shrine on Foot
- Parasite Filming Locations — a Half-Day Seoul Route, North to South
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- Six in Jongno, and the Evening Each One Opens
Where these facts come from
- National Museum of Korea — visitor information ·
- National Museum of Korea — permanent galleries by floor ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the Silla room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the first Joseon room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the calligraphy and painting room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the first donation room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the celadon room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the Central Asia room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the Goguryeo room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the Korean Empire room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the third donation room ·
- National Museum of Korea — objects on show in the buncheong and white porcelain room ·