The Netflix series Kingdom meticulously recreates Joseon-era clothing, palace architecture, and traditional village structures, introducing the visual beauty of Korean traditional culture to global audiences. The costumes, buildings, and living spaces featured in the series were produced with careful historical research, visually revealing the hierarchical structure and cultural characteristics of Joseon’s class-based society.

The most striking cultural element in the series is Joseon-era hanbok (Korean traditional clothing). Royal figures including Crown Prince Lee Chang wear elaborate silk robes called gonryongpo (“dragon robe”) and ceremonial hats called ikseongwan, while court officials wear official robes (gwanbok) with black gauze hats (samo). Yangban (aristocratic) men wear overcoats (dopo) with horsehair hats (gat) and topknots (sangtu), while commoners dress in simple cotton clothing. Women’s attire also varies by social status: queens and court ladies wear ornate jackets (dangui) and skirt-and-jeogori ensembles, while commoner women wear modest versions of the skirt-and-jeogori. These clothing distinctions reflect Joseon’s strict class system and ritual propriety (yebeop).

Palace architecture serves as another crucial visual element in the series. The production filmed at actual Joseon palaces including Gyeongbokgung and Changdeokgung, including at pavilions such as Gyeonghoeru showcasing royal dignity and the aesthetics of Joseon architecture. The palaces of Hanyang feature tiled-roof wooden structures decorated with ornate multi-colored paintwork (dancheong), symbolizing Confucian order and royal authority. Meanwhile, provincial villages and commoner residences are depicted through traditional Korean houses (hanok) and thatched-roof cottages (chogajip). Aristocratic homes are tile-roofed structures (giwajip) with separated men’s quarters (sarangchae) and women’s quarters (anchae), while commoners live in thatched-roof cottages. These architectural distinctions visually embody the stratified nature of Joseon society.

Through meticulous art direction, costume design, and set production alongside performances by actors including Bae Doona, Kingdom vividly recreates the material culture of the Joseon period. The series played a significant role in introducing the world to the aesthetic beauty of Korean traditional culture—the lines and colors of hanbok, the curved elegance and nature-harmonizing structure of hanok, and the grandeur of royal palaces.