(3rd LD) National museum chief resigns over misattributed work from private collection

SEOUL, Oct. 21 (Yonhap) -- You Hong-june, director of the National Museum of Kor...

Yonhap NewsKim Boram2026-10-21 19:00查看原文 ↗

You Hong-june, director of the National Museum of Korea, speaks during a parliamentary audit at the National Assembly in Seoul on Oct. 19, 2026. (Yonhap)

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(ATTN: UPDATES with president's approval in paras 1-2; RECASTS headline) By Shim Sun-ah

SEOUL, Oct. 21 (Yonhap) -- You Hong-june, director of the National Museum of Korea, resigned Wednesday amid a controversy over the museum's display of a misattributed calligraphic work from his private collection.

He offered to resign earlier in the day, and President Lee Jae Myung accepted his resignation.

You came under fire after the piece, written by a prominent pro-Japanese collaborator during Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea, was wrongly introduced as the work of a Korean independence activist and was found to be from his private collection.

The museum removed the item from its ongoing special exhibition following the controversy.

You Hong-june, director of the National Museum of Korea, speaks during a parliamentary audit at the National Assembly in Seoul on Oct. 19, 2026. (Yonhap)

In a statement sent to reporters, You said he has concluded that he should step down "to restore the museum's tarnished honor."

"The deep trust the public has placed in the National Museum of Korea and the value our staff has built collapsed in an instant because of my personal mistake," he said. "All criticism over this matter is entirely my responsibility."

You, a prominent art historian and author of the bestselling book series "My Exploration of Cultural Heritage," apologized twice and bowed before lawmakers at a parliamentary audit on Monday. However, calls for his resignation persisted from figures in the cultural sector and opposition politicians, who said an apology was insufficient to take responsibility for the fiasco.

You served as head of the Cultural Heritage Administration, now the Korea Heritage Service, from 2004 to 2008 before becoming director of the museum in July last year.

You Hong-june, director of the National Museum of Korea, bows in apology over a controversy involving the museum's display of a misattributed calligraphic work from his private collection, during a parliamentary audit at the National Assembly in Seoul on Oct. 19, 2026. (Yonhap)

He once again made a public apology, saying he was "deeply sorry" to the people who had been disappointed, to the bereaved family of the independence activist, and to museum staff.

"Although it was a short period of 15 months, being able to take part in the honorable task of protecting the value of our cultural heritage was the greatest blessing and honor of my life," You said.

Referring to the "Our Dining Table" exhibition, he said, "I hope the significance of the exhibition, which museum researchers prepared with great care over a long period, will not be overshadowed.

"I will not forget the efforts of the staff who worked day and night for the museum's growth," You added, asking the public to continue to support the museum so that it can make further progress.

You Hong-june, director of the National Museum of Korea (Yonhap)

sshim@yna.co.kr (END)

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(3rd LD) National museum chief resigns over misattributed work from private collection

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（注意：第1-2段更新了总统批准的内容；重写了标题）作者：沈善雅

首尔，10 月 21 日（韩联社）——韩国国立中央博物馆馆长柳洪俊周三辞职，此前该博物馆展出了一幅来自其私人收藏的、被错误归于其名下的书法作品，引发争议。

他当天早些时候提出辞职，李在明总统接受了他的辞呈。