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Silla-era gold crown exhibition pulls 285,000 despite visitor cap

Published: 24 Feb. 2026, 14:34

Visitors are seen at an exhibition hall for Silla-era gold crowns in Gyeongju, in this photo provided by the National Museum of Gyeongju [NATIONAL MUSEUM OF GYEONGJU]

A special exhibition of gold crowns from the ancient Silla Kingdom has drawn more than 285,000 visitors to the National Museum of Gyeongju despite strict limits on daily attendance, the museum said Tuesday.

The exhibition, titled "Silla Gold Crowns: Power and Prestige," ended Sunday after attracting 285,401 visitors. Attendance was capped at 2,550 people per day, or 150 per session, yet every slot was booked out, according to museum officials.

The show, which opened to the public in November, brought together six exquisite gold crowns normally scattered across different museums around the country. It marked the first time the treasures had been assembled in about 104 years, since they were first discovered in ancient Silla (57 B.C. to A.D. 935) tombs in Gyeongju. The city, located 275 kilometers southeast of Seoul, was the capital of Silla, which ruled about two-thirds of the Korean Peninsula at its height.

Interest surged even before the opening after a replica of one of the gold crowns was presented to U.S. President Donald Trump during a Korea-U.S. summit, fueling what local media dubbed a "gold crown open-run," referring to people rushing in as soon as doors open.

As more people flocked in, the museum introduced an online reservation system limiting daily admissions to 2,550. Despite the system, long queues stretched beyond the museum during the final two weeks of the exhibition, the officials said.

The Gyeongju museum has said it plans to mount similar gold crown exhibitions every ten years, marking the first time that a Korean national museum has committed to periodically exhibiting a specific artifact or theme. In 2035, it will expand the show to include gold crowns excavated both inside and outside the country.

This year, the museum will also showcase the crowns in other provincial cities such as Yangsan and Cheongdo, and hold special exhibitions highlighting Silla culture in Paris and Shanghai.

Yonhap