SEOUL, October 21 (AJP) - National Museum of Korea Director You Hong June offered to resign Wednesday over controversy surrounding a misidentified calligraphy work from his private collection.
The museum displayed the work in its special exhibition "Our Tables" as calligraphy by independence activist Park Won-geun. It was later identified as the work of Park Jung-yang, who was designated by the government as a pro-Japanese collaborator.
Criticism intensified after it emerged that the work belonged to the director himself, raising questions over the museum's verification process and a potential conflict of interest.
"I concluded that stepping down as director is the right thing to do to restore the museum's damaged reputation," You said in a statement.
He apologized to the public, descendants of independence activists and museum employees, saying responsibility for the controversy rested with him.
Lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition parties questioned the chief of the National Museum over the case during a parliamentary audit on Monday. He apologized twice during the hearing.
You, who has led the museum for about 15 months, said he hoped the controversy would not overshadow the work of museum researchers who prepared the exhibition.
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