Exhibition sheds light on roots of community spirit

Ulsan Museum spotlights traditional tug-of-war heritage with 'Maduhui: Connecting the Rope' exhibition

Promotional poster for 'Maduhui: Connecting the Rope, Connecting Generations' [Ulsan Museum]

Ulsan Museum has opened an exhibition tracing the history of "maduhui," a traditional tug-of-war passed down through generations in the Ulsan region, from its historical origins to its continuation as a modern festival.

The museum is hosting its second flash exhibition of 2026, titled "Maduhui: Connecting the Rope, Connecting Generations," in the second-floor lobby through Aug. 9. The exhibition opened Tuesday.

Timed to coincide with the Year of the Horse, the exhibition was designed to explore Ulsan's history and community spirit through maduhui, a designated intangible cultural heritage and one of the city's most representative traditional folk games.

Maduhui is a tug-of-war handed down for hundreds of years centered on the Ulsan township and Byeongyeongseong Fortress. More than a simple game, it is the product of a folk belief known as "bibo sinang" — the practice of supplementing the geomantic energy of a place to promote harmony among residents.

A record of its origins appears in "Hakseongji," a local gazetteer published in 1749: "The shape of Dongdaesan resembles a horse's head, and residents lamented that it did not look westward, so they pulled on a rope and made it into a game."

The exhibition is organized into four parts — Part 1, "A Ritual of Abundance Cultivated with One Heart"; Part 2, "The Rope That Connects History"; Part 3, "Pull the Rope, Draw in Fortune"; and Part 4, "From Today Into Tomorrow" — tracing maduhui's historical roots through to its present-day life as a festival.

The exhibition reflects on the aspirations of ancestors who prayed for the peace and prosperity of their villages, inviting visitors to consider the meaning of community solidarity in contemporary society. It also highlights maduhui's standing as a folk tradition and illuminates the process of crafting the enormous ropes used in the tug-of-war.

"Maduhui is a living heritage that embodies the identity of Ulsan," a museum official said. "We hope this exhibition becomes an opportunity to share the community spirit of maduhui — a spirit that connects one generation to the next."

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