Namsangol Park Seoul Millennium Time Capsule Plaza

The purpose is to enshrine 600 artifacts representing the civic life and appearance of Seoul today, marking the 600th anniversary of the capital's establishment, in a capsule to pass them on as cultural heritage to descendants in the year 1,000 of Seoul's capital status, 400 years later. For its 400-year journey through time, the time capsule, which still lies in a long slumber, was specially manufactured by the Seoul Metropolitan Government to commemorate the 600th anniversary of the capital, on November 29, 1994, in the shape modeled after the Bosingak Bell, with a diameter of 1.3 m, a height of 1.7 m, and a weight of 2.5 t.
This capsule contains about 600 artifacts that showcase all aspects of current life, including politics, economy, society, and culture. The Namsangol Time Capsule Plaza, where the capsule is buried, forms a basin shaped like a 1,500-pyeong meteorite crater, and the time capsule is buried in a round, 42m-wide sunken area. In addition, the Seoul Metropolitan Government landscaped the surroundings with marble inscribed with congratulatory messages from mayors around the world in various languages, 12 pillars surrounding the basin symbolizing the cyclical nature of time, and ginkgo trees known as living fossils. The artifacts, strictly selected through two rounds of public submissions, were buried at a ratio of 30% actual objects, 5% scale models and blueprints, 25% CD-ROMs or microfilm, and 40% video recordings.
Inside the time capsule, all the artifacts representing our current way of life are displayed in the form of actual objects, video recordings, microfilms, and miniature models, including seeds of rice and barley, 2,000 aerial film rolls of Seoul, Woo Hwang Cheong Sim Hwan, elementary, middle and high school textbooks, spoons, bus tokens, disposable lighters, and microfilm of a newspaper with the Seongsu Bridge collapse on the front page. Among the artifacts stored as actual objects are diapers, cigarettes, pantyhose, men's and women's swimsuits, health foods such as brown rice enzyme, credit cards, real estate sales contracts, seeds of major crops, contraceptives, artificial hearts, gift certificates, civil servant pay stubs, driver's licenses, elementary, middle and high school exam papers, cordless phones, hwatu, and various lottery tickets, while the miniature models include Uribyeol 1, 1994 model passenger cars, electric trains, personal computers, and excavators.
In addition, the contents stored on CD-ROMs and microfilm include the dining table menus of Seoul citizens that were widely consumed at the time, kimchi types and how to make them, the status of AIDS, test-tube babies, bidding clubs (naktchalgye), the real-name financial system, empty securities accounts, the subway TBM method, building management registers, customs detection lists, the land sale system, the reality of entrance exam irregularities, the status of Nanjido, the 1994 bestseller list, new town development, and the Seoul 2000 urban plan. Along with this, video records such as CDs and LDs contain men's and women's children's clothing, men's and women's hanbok, various family ceremonies, professional baseball, securities company trading floors, Yongsan Electronics Market, Namdaemun Market, department stores, 24-hour convenience stores, small corner shops, TV public service advertisements, real estate agencies (bokdeokbang), the president's daily schedule, the orange tribe, karaoke rooms, and ssireum, making the time capsule truly a model of Korean history.

Accessible travel information

Machine-translated from Korean.

Mobility

Parking

Reserved parking for people with disabilities available_Barrier-free facilities

Access route

No step at the entrance, so wheelchair access is possible

Wheelchairs

Available for rental

Entrance passage

The main entrance has no level difference, so it is wheelchair accessible

Restroom

Accessible restroom available

Other facilities

Use of accessibility facilities at Namsangol Hanok Village

Visual

Audio guide

Audio guide available

Families with infants

Strollers

Available for rental

Nursing room

Nursing room available