Next to the palace is a few buildings belonging to the National Folk Museum. Entrance was included with the admission used to enter Gyonhbok. The tallest of the buildings is visible from many parts of the grounds. There was a childrens play area and an exhibition hall.
But, the thing that caught people attention was this circle of statues. They represented the asian zodiac in, what I like to think of as, warrior forms.
Each figure had a stern look on their face wihtout exception. The horse, snake, and dragon keep vigil in tehir respective direction
The monkey, like the rest of them, enrobed in uniforms and grasping a staff or a sword. The centerpiece makred the years that correspond to each zodaic. Crowds woudl immediatly gather around to snap a picture with their favorite or birth sign.
This represents whaqt life used to be like with the archetecture of the time and the setup of the living spaces. From what I've seen in many korean tv shows, things still look alot like this for people who live in the country
There are steps that lead up the edifice but sign are placed that ask that you not climb the stairs. This is to protect the paintings of the dragons, I assume.