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Korea debuts 'K-Heritage' pavilion as UNESCO meeting lands in Busan

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By Jhoo Dong-chan
  • Published KST
Visitors view royal ceramics at the Busan Museum during a special exhibition marking the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee. The exhibition features roughly 200 historical items, including 33 registered on the UNESCO Memory of the World list and some 80 state-designated national treasures. Yonhap

Visitors view royal ceramics at the Busan Museum during a special exhibition marking the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee. The exhibition features roughly 200 historical items, including 33 registered on the UNESCO Memory of the World list and some 80 state-designated national treasures. Yonhap

The Korea Heritage Service will run a series of exhibitions and events at "K-Heritage House," a pavilion inside BEXCO Exhibition Hall 1 in Busan, during the 48th session of the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, running July 19-29. The pavilion itself will operate from July 20-29.

Several government agencies will host booths inside the pavilion. The National Archives of Korea will display 20 UNESCO Memory of the World-listed items and about 100 records. The Ministry of Oceans and Fisheries will promote "getbol," Korean tidal flats, a UNESCO World Heritage site, alongside Korean seafood, while the agriculture ministry will highlight Korea's traditional "jang" fermentation culture, a UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage practice, through tastings and multimedia displays.

Buddhist heritage sites, including the mountain monasteries known as Sansa and Haeinsa Temple, home to the Tripitaka Koreana woodblocks, will also be featured in exhibits, alongside pavilions on the Buddhist rites Yeongsanjae and Jingwansa Gukhaeng Suryukjae. The Justpeace Foundation, whose honorary chair is singer G-Dragon, will promote its Heritage in Peace campaign.

The pavilion's main stage will host 38 traditional performances over 10 days, including the mask dance Cheoyongmu and the Bukcheong Lion Dance. Reenactments of royal palace guard ceremonies and processions will run daily, and visitors can pose for photos with a costumed guard character during lunch hours.

Visitors can also get a temporary "heritage tattoo" based on one of Korea's 17 World Heritage sites, or receive a Cookie Run-branded postcard by posting a photo from the pavilion on social media.

"We will do our best to ensure a safe, successful event," Korea Heritage Service Administrator Huh Min said.

This article was published with the assistance of generative AI and edited by The Korea Times.