The British Museum's major exhibition on Korea showcases 2,000 years of artistic creativity and has been positioned as a significant offering following the Bayeux tapestry's success. The exhibition excels in presenting exquisite pre-20th century artworks, including Buddhist-era sculptures and ceramics, but suffers from a jarring shift into mediocre early 20th-century art that fails to meaningfully engage with Korea's traumatic modern history.

The exhibition features exceptional pieces spanning the Buddhist period, the Goryeo dynasty's celebrated celadon ceramics, and the Joseon dynasty's refined pottery, including an eighth-century bronze bell and an 18th-century white moon jar. However, the collection lacks adequate context for Korea's brutal 20th century, including Japanese colonisation from 1910 to 1945 and the Korean War, which killed approximately three million people. The exhibition is drawn from the private collection of Lee Kun-hee, the late Samsung chair and the exhibition's "corporate partner," which reflects individual taste rather than providing an objective historical survey of Korean art and culture.