Exclusive Exhibition of Geological Heritage Ends... 1,507 Items Nationalized

Designation of Storage Management Institutions and Sharing of Specimen Information
Comprehensive Survey and Cataloging Project of Geological Heritage Specimens

Yongamsu Tree Form (Jeju Natural History Museum)

The Cultural Heritage Administration announced on the 1st that 1,507 high-value geological heritage items held by national and public institutions have been attributed to the state.

Geological heritage such as fossils and rock specimens are buried cultural assets and natural heritage without owners. According to the "Act on the Protection and Investigation of Buried Cultural Assets," they must be managed by the state. However, unlike archaeological excavated artifacts, the attribution process was slow, exposing them to risks such as damage, loss, and concealment.

To legalize and promote proper state attribution, the Cultural Heritage Administration provided organizations and individuals storing and managing geological heritage specimens a voluntary reporting opportunity for six months starting in September 2020. During the reporting period, 4,374 specimens were submitted. After verifying specimen information, conducting on-site investigations by related experts, grading evaluations, and public notices of lost items, the Cultural Heritage Administration attributed 1,507 geological heritage items managed by twenty-two institutions to the state. These include the orbicular granite gneiss at the Natural Monument Center of the National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage, the olivine-bearing basalt at the Korea Institute of Geoscience and Mineral Resources, and dinosaur egg nest fossils at the Seodaemun Museum of Natural History. These items are registered in the integrated state attribution management system, with designated storage and management institutions and shared specimen information.

Plant Fossil (Seodaemun Natural History Museum)

As part of systematic management, the Cultural Heritage Administration is also conducting a full survey and cataloging project of geological heritage specimens. The state attribution process is being implemented step-by-step and cataloged to enable easy sharing and utilization by anyone. Lee Geun-young, an officer at the Natural Monument Division of the Cultural Heritage Conservation Bureau, stated, "Geological heritage is important material that informs not only the geomorphological history of the Korean Peninsula but also extinct life forms and paleoenvironmental conditions." He added, "We plan to move away from exclusive storage and exhibition by some institutions or individuals toward information openness, circulating exhibitions, and activation of academic research."