The Youku drama, known in Chinese as Jia Jin Chai (嫁金钗), features an ornate incense burner with visual elements resembling the famous Korean National Treasure, including a phoenix at the top, a mountain-shaped lid, a lotus-shaped body and a dragon supporting the base.
The similarity prompted discussion on Korean online communities and social media, with some users accusing the production of using a recognizable Korean cultural artifact without historical context.
The debate intensified after social-media posts circulated arguing that the Baekje incense burner should be considered Chinese in origin because mountain-shaped incense burners have earlier precedents in China and Baekje maintained extensive cultural exchanges with China’s Southern Dynasties.
While the Baekje burner does reflect cultural influences that circulated across East Asia, Korean heritage institutions identify the artifact itself as a Baekje work dating to the sixth to seventh century.
The incense burner was excavated in 1993 from the Neungsan-ri temple site in Buyeo and is currently housed at the Buyeo National Museum. It is designated as a National Treasure of South Korea and is regarded as one of the most significant surviving works of Baekje metalwork.
The online discussion subsequently expanded beyond the drama prop itself into a broader argument over cultural exchange, artistic influence and the historical identity of the artifact.
Netizen Reactions
The sampled reactions were overwhelmingly critical and frequently nationalistic, with several commenters accusing Chinese users of attempting to appropriate Korean history. Some also used explicitly derogatory language toward Chinese people, so those reactions should remain clearly attributed as individual comments.
1. Now even the Northeast Project is using another country’s national treasures as props.
2. It was excavated in our country, so why the hell is it yours, you morons?
3. Same as ever—thieving Chinese bastards.
4. The Gilt-Bronze Incense Burner just randomly shows up looking completely out of place ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ Stealing other countries’ artifacts and history really is on brand for a nation of thieves. I tried reading Water Margin and nearly threw up at how it glorified bands of outlaws, so I dropped it after a few volumes.
5. What a load of bullshit. Our incense burner was literally found on the floor of a workshop ㅋㅋ It’s from Baekje, so cut the nonsense.
6. As expected, since we’re the great power, they’re volunteering to become our vassal state.
7. It literally came out of the ground in our country, you lunatics. You don’t have anything because you burned your own stuff! But more importantly, wasn’t that used for rituals? ㅋㅋㅋ Is that a dead person’s room? Why is it sitting there?
8. What a load of f*cking bullshit. They burned all their own stuff, so I guess ours looked grand and impressive to them. Shameless bastards.
9. It’s because they destroyed and burned cultural heritage during the Cultural Revolution. They even accuse us of coveting Confucius, when they themselves damaged Confucius related sites during the Cultural Revolution.
10. When this was first discovered, China supposedly claimed it was theirs too, but there was no evidence ㅋㅋ I looked into it more, and since the incense burner was excavated from a workshop area attached to the temple, it seems to have been produced locally. Chinese boshan incense burners were popular much earlier, while the Baekje incense burner dates to around the sixth or seventh century.
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