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| Visitors see the exhibition "Peonies: Flowers of Peace and Prosperity" held at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap |
By Park Ji-won
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| Poster for the special exhibition "Peonies: Flowers of Peace and Prosperity" by the National Palace Museum of Korea / Courtesy of National Palace Museum of Korea |
Titled as "Peonies: Flowers of Peace and Prosperity," the National Palace Museum of Korea's special exhibition, which opened Wednesday and runs until Oct. 31, shows up to 120 peony drawings and explores their meanings used in clothes, furniture and objects especially of the 1392-1910 Joseon Kingdom.
The special exhibition consists of three sections. In the first section, "Growing and Enjoying Peonies," visitors can see drawings of the flower. In the second, "Blooming Peonies in Designs," visitors can see the peony patterns used in various daily objects in the palaces. In the third section, "Peonies Embodying Wishes for a Peaceful Royal Court and a Prosperous Dynasty," visitors can see objects with flower patterns used in rituals and funerals.
The highlight of the exhibition is two wedding dresses or hwarot (bridal robe) with floral patterns which will be unveiled to the public for the first time.
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| Visitors see the exhibition "Peonies: Flowers of Peace and Prosperity" held at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul, Tuesday. Yonhap |
One of them is the hwarot worn by Princess Bokon (1818-32), the second daughter of King Sunjo, on her wedding day. This is the only hwarot where the exact date of use is known. The other hwarot is a traditional piece from Changdeok Palace. The museum discovered that the gown was shaped using old test papers from a civil service exam held in 1880.
"The clothes, which were in bad condition, will be revealed for the first time since 2016 after their restoration process," said Kim Jae-eun, an academic researcher of the museum. "We found that the paper discovered inside the clothes was full of writing. After taking infrared and endoscopy, we found out that it was an answer sheet for the national exam held to celebrate the 50th birthday of Queen Hyojung in 1880."
What differentiates it from other exhibitions is that the facility has installed peony scents made out of actual peony from Nakseonjae, a residential compound inside Changdeok Palace?, one of the five main palaces of Joseon, and plays recordings of nature sounds such as rain and bird song so that visitors can have a full sensory experience of the flower.
Visitors must make online reservations or register offline to see the exhibition. The number of visitors will be limited to 100 per hour and a total of 1,000 per day, due to the COVID-19 situation.
