[Culture & Heritage] 333 Silla Artifacts Head to Paris for Europe's First...

Geumgwanchong Gold Crown, Gyeongju. Photo by Gyeongju National Museum.

A major collection of Silla cultural heritage is heading to Paris. It marks the first exhibition in Europe dedicated exclusively to the ancient Korean kingdom of Silla. The exhibition will be held at the Musée Guimet, officially known as the National Museum of Asian Arts-Guimet. Since opening in 1889, the museum has grown into one of Europe’s leading institutions for Asian art, beginning with the collection donated by French businessman Émile Guimet.

The exhibition includes 333 artifacts across 148 entries, among them nine National Treasures and ten Treasures of Korea. Gyeongju National Museum contributes 314 artifacts from 130 entries, including eight National Treasures and nine Treasures. Leeum Museum of Art contributes six works from five entries, including one National Treasure and one Treasure. Additional works are provided by the Gyeongju National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, the Musée Guimet, the Bibliothèque nationale de France, and the Collège de France.

The exhibition follows roughly a thousand years of Silla history, from the kingdom’s emergence to its fall in 935. Major artifacts include the Geumgwanchong Gold Crown and gold belt, the golden sword excavated from Gyerim-ro, Roman glassware, Buddhist sculptures, dharani texts, and reliquary objects. Hyecho’s “Wang ocheonchukguk jeon,” held by the Bibliothèque nationale de France, will also be displayed.

The Geumgwanchong Gold Crown and gold belt serve as key materials illustrating the nature of Silla’s gold culture. The golden sword and Roman glassware reveal traces of Silla’s exchange with the outside world. Buddhist statues and sculptures explain the development of Buddhist art after the unification period. “Wang ocheonchukguk jeon” records the travels of the Silla monk Hyecho.

Golden Sword from Gyerim-ro, Gyeongju. Photo by Gyeongju National Museum.

The exhibition is organized into five sections. Part One, “Gyeongju, the Thousand-Year Capital of Silla,” opens with the Daereungwon district, a UNESCO World Heritage site. The section introduces the historical character of the Silla capital through the landscape of Gyeongju and historical records.

Part Two, “Iron Thrones,” focuses on Saroguk, the foundation of Silla. Iron production technology is presented as a background to the growth of the ancient state. Duck-shaped pottery and bead necklaces show the funerary worldview and visual sensibilities of the people of Saroguk.

Part Three, “The Golden Throne of the Maripgan,” centers on the material culture of the Maripgan period between the 4th and 6th centuries. The Geumgwanchong Gold Crown and gold belt form the core of the section. The golden sword and Roman glassware are positioned as artifacts explaining the international exchanges of the Silla royal court.

Part Four, “Buddhism and the Sword,” deals with the unification of the Three Kingdoms and the period after unification. State-protecting Buddhism, military power based on iron, and the material culture of the royal capital are presented together within a single section. The structure allows visitors to read how governance, religion, and military force operated within the same historical period.

Gilt-bronze Pensive Bodhisattva from Mulgeum-myeon, Yangsan. Photo by Gyeongju National Museum.

Part Five, “Under the Moon of the Lotus,” focuses on Buddhist art and thought after unification. Artifacts on display include gilt-bronze standing and seated Buddha statues from Guhwang-dong in Gyeongju, dharani texts, reliquary objects, and stone pagoda panels. The final section includes a recreated space inspired by Seokguram Grotto, interpreting the spatial qualities and religious symbolism of Silla Buddhist sculpture within the Paris exhibition hall.

Beginning with gold ornaments and royal artifacts, the exhibition concludes with Buddhist art and the recreated space of Seokguram.

“Silla, Kingdom of Gold and Sacredness” runs from May 20 to August 31 at the special exhibition hall of the Musée Guimet in Paris’s 16th arrondissement.

Reported by News Culture M.J._mj94070777@nc.press

* This article was manually prepared as a translated piece and later proofread and reviewed with the assistance of AI.