• Print
• E-mail
• Add to My Trips

The Korea Gallery, the first section of a planned Hall of Asian Cultures, opened today at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History.

A tall wooden pole, known as a sotdae, with carved ducks atop, greets visitors to the new gallery. The pole is an ancient Korean tradition, still in use, to offer protection against calamities and disasters

The permanent exhibit seeks to touch on many aspects of Korean life and culture.

"Welcome to Korea, where the past is always present and traditions inspire the future" is the greeting to visitors.

Though the country has long been divided in two, the common cultural identity is stressed rather than the political differences.

Those come through, though, in exhibits such as a satellite photo of the Korean peninsula at night, with the glittering bright lights of the cities of South Korea in sharp contrast with the general darkness of the North. Yet a few feet away a satellite photo taken in daytime seems to wash away the differences, displaying the mountains and valleys so common to both parts of the country.

The 1,800-square-foot exhibition includes sections on Korean ceramics, Hangeul — the phonetic Korean writing system — family, landscapes and Koreans living overseas.

Among the featured items are traditional wedding clothes for the bride and groom, a "semi-lunar" knife once used to gather rice, examples of calligraphy, wooden furniture, stone and wooden sculptures, and paintings.

Many of the items on display are from the collection in the museum's anthropology department, and others are donated for the exhibit. The gallery was supported by the Korea Foundation, with additional support from Korean Air and other donors.