Special exhibition features diplomatic gifts, treaty documents and archival materials tracing the 140-year history of diplomatic ties A visitor takes a photo of a painted white porcelain salamina vase at the exhibition "Gifts and Records: 140 Years of Korea-France Friendship" at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul on Tuesday. (Yonhap) "Your Excellency, I have the honor to inform you that I received yesterday the three crates containing the vases produced at the National Sevres Manufactory and presented by the President of the French Republic to His Majesty the King of Korea."So wrote French envoy Victor Collin de Plancy in a letter to King Gojong on June 22, 1888.The correspondence documented the arrival of a historic diplomatic gift: three pieces of Sevres porcelain — one Salamina vase and two Clodion vases — sent by President Marie Francois Sadi Carnot of the French Third Republic to the Korean monarch. Produced at the prestigious Sevres Porcelain Manufactory, long patronized by the French crown and later the French state, the ceramics represented one of France's most distinguished diplomatic gifts. Pair of Goryeo celadon bowls (Sevres National Manufactory and Museum) In response, King Gojong sent an array of gifts the following month, including a pair of "banhwa," or ornamental potted trees crafted from precious jewels and materials, books on state rituals and history, and a pair of 12th-century Goryeo celadon bowls. One bowl was inlaid with two parrots, a symbol of familial harmony, while the other was decorated with peony scroll motifs in relief, a traditional symbol of wealth and prosperity.Coming two years after Joseon and France signed their Treaty of Friendship and Commerce in 1886, the exchange marked the beginning of an official relationship between two nations separated by geography but increasingly connected through diplomacy, culture and trade.More than a century later, the history of diplomatic gift exchange is the focus of a new exhibition tracing 140 years of ties between Korea and France. The special exhibition, "Gifts and Records: 140 Years of Korea-France Friendship," opened Wednesday at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul. Treaty of Friendship and Commerce between Joseon and France (The National Library of Korea) Treaty of Friendship and Commerce between Joseon and France (Archives of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs) The exhibition brings together original documents related to the 1886 treaty, diplomatic gifts, and correspondence exchanged by successive leaders of South Korea and France, a museum official said during a press preview ahead of the exhibition's opening.Among its highlights is the first-ever joint display of treaty documents and ratification records held separately by the Archives of the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the National Library of Korea. For visitors, it is the first opportunity to compare Korean and French copies of the diplomatic documents that laid the foundation for formal relations.Also on display are diplomatic gifts exchanged by the leaders of Korea and France over decades, including a mother-of-pearl lacquer box and an inlaid celadon piece presented by Korea to France, as well as a bottle of cognac and a Dior handbag gifted by France to Korea. Onggi wine bottle from the collection of the Sevres National Ceramics Museum, France (Sevres National Manufactory and Museum) The exhibition also sheds light on lesser-known episodes from the earliest encounters between Koreans and the French. One highlight is an onggi wine bottle from the collection of the National Ceramics Museum in Sevres, France, on display in Korea for the first time.The bottle dates to an encounter in 1851, when the French whaling ship Narval was wrecked off Bigeum-do, an island off Korea's southwestern coast. Charles de Montigny, the French consul in Shanghai, traveled to Joseon to assist the stranded crew. His meeting with Yi Jeong-hyeon, the magistrate of Naju, is regarded as the first face-to-face encounter between government officials of the two countries.Joseon authorities welcomed the French party, hosting a banquet and assisting with the crew's safe return. The onggi bottle bears an inscription on its base noting that it was received together with refreshments from local residents.A companion exhibition, "Banhwa: Blossoms of Auspicious Wishes," also opened Wednesday at Dondeokjeon Hall in Deoksugung. The exhibition highlights a pair of banhwa reproductions crafted by nationally recognized artisan Kim Young-hee using traditional techniques and explores the symbolism of auspicious imagery in the Joseon court.The exhibition at the National Palace Museum of Korea runs through Aug. 2, while the Deoksugung exhibition continues through Aug. 30.The National Palace Museum of Korea is closed on the last Monday of each month. Deoksugung is closed every Monday. The exhibition at Dondeokjeon Hall will also be closed this Thursday.Admission to both exhibitions is free.Written commentary is available in Korean, English and French. Painted white porcelain "Salamina" vase (National Palace Museum of Korea) Poster for the National Palace Museum of Korea's special exhibition "Gifts and Records: 140 Years of Korea-France Friendship" A view of the exhibition "Gifts and Records: 140 Years of Korea-France Friendship" at the National Palace Museum of Korea in Seoul on Tuesday. (Yonhap)