Joseon Dynasty album
- Gallery: Room 67
- Culture: Joseon Dynasty
- Made in: Korea
- Date: 19th century
- Object type: album, painting
- Materials: paper
- Museum number: 1961,0513,0.4.1-12
- Museum: The British Museum
- Collection record: British Museum website
- Image © The Trustees of the British Museum, shared under a CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 licence.
Listen to the free audio guide
About this object
This is an album from the Joseon Dynasty in Korea, painted in the 19th century. It features 22 scenes of trades and everyday life, such as wrestling, fishing, and music. One scene even shows a lively wrestling match known as "ssirum," with wrestlers and cheering spectators.
The paintings use simple, expressive brushstrokes and vibrant ink and color on paper. A seal marked "Mun Hye-san’s Seal" appears often, possibly belonging to a Buddhist monk painter.
This album is based on originals by Kim Hong-do, a master painter known for his humorous portrayals of ordinary people. In addition to trades, the scenes show schoolboys, well-visitors, and fishermen—capturing a lively, candid view of the time.
The album ends with a world map and a famous Daoist illustration known as the Keng-Chin T'u. It represents a tradition of visual storytelling that brings Korea’s past to vivid life.
See it in person
Joseon Dynasty album is on display in Room 67 at the British Museum on Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, London — free to enter. Choose British Museum on audioguide.london and take a photo of it to hear this free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
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