Busan Museum exhibition on Joseon records draws 70,000 visitors

A special exhibition jointly organized by the Busan Museum and the National Palace Museum of Korea has drawn a cumulative 70,000 visitors, making it the second-best-attended special exhibition in the Busan Museum's history.

The exhibition, titled "Records and Culture of Joseon, Passed Down Through the Ages," opened July 7 to mark the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee session held in Busan this year. It has drawn a steady stream of families on summer vacation as well as domestic and international tourists visiting the city.

The 70,000-visitor milestone trails only the 80,000 who attended the 2024 special exhibition "Collectors: The Joy of Collecting, the Pleasure of Sharing," making it the second-highest attendance figure for a Busan Museum special exhibition. With the show running through Sunday, the final count is expected to climb further.

The exhibition brings together the documentary spirit of the Joseon dynasty — which meticulously committed every stage of governance to writing from the kingdom's founding — alongside royal court culture and the history of foreign exchange centered on Dongnaebу (present-day Busan), which served as a key diplomatic hub.

On display are 166 artifacts comprising 193 individual items, including UNESCO Memory of the World inscriptions such as the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty, the Seungjeongwon Ilgi (royal secretariat diaries), the Ilseongnok (royal daily records), Joseon royal protocols, royal seals and investiture books, and records of the Joseon Tongsinsa diplomatic missions. Also featured are royal portraits of Kings Yeongjo and Cheoljong, the Donggwoldo palace map, a blue-and-white porcelain jar with landscape and bird-and-flower designs, and a white porcelain moon jar.

Particularly notable was the first-ever simultaneous public display of all four provincial archive copies of the Annals of the Joseon Dynasty — from the Jeongjoksan, Taebaek, Odaesan and Jeoksangsan archives — alongside national treasures including the Donggwoldo and the royal portraits of Yeongjo and Cheoljong, drawing attention even before the opening.

Broad promotional efforts tied to the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee session and expanded viewing opportunities proved decisive in driving attendance. The city activated online and offline channels from the outset to build awareness, and two promotional videos it produced were distributed across official social media accounts, YouTube and downtown digital billboards, accumulating about 490,000 views.

The special exhibition runs through Sunday. Admission is free, and visitors can deepen their experience through daily docent-led gallery talks at 2 p.m. and a weekly "History Outing with a Curator" program every Friday at 3 p.m.

"The fact that more than 70,000 people visited this special exhibition reflects the public's keen interest in Joseon's documentary culture and royal heritage," Busan Museum Director Jeong Eun-woo said. "It is also deeply meaningful that we were able to share the value and excellence of our cultural heritage in Busan on the occasion of the 48th UNESCO World Heritage Committee session."