Visitors wash hair in calamus water ahead of Dano festival
By Han Jun-guPosted : June 17, 2026, 16:30Updated : June 17, 2026, 16:30
Foreign visitors and a child take part in a calamus water hair-washing experience during a Dano seasonal event in front of Ochon-daek at the National Folk Museum of Korea in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on June 17, 2026. AJP Han Jun-gu
SEOUL, June 17 (AJP) - Foreign tourists and children participated in a centuries-old Korean tradition of washing their hair in water infused with calamus root at the National Folk Museum of Korea in Seoul on Wednesday, two days ahead of this year's Dano festival.
The museum held the demonstration in the courtyard of Ochon-daek, a traditional house on its grounds, as part of its seasonal Dano program. Dano falls on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month and has long been marked as a major folk holiday, with customs meant to ward off evil spirits and bring good fortune. Washing hair in water boiled with calamus root is a custom, believed to keep hair from graying early and to repel bad luck.
This year's Dano falls on June 19, when the museum plans additional events including fan-giving, bracelet-making and special performances.
Foreign visitors and a child take part in a calamus water hair-washing experience during a Dano seasonal event in front of Ochon-daek at the National Folk Museum of Korea in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on June 17, 2026. AJP Han Jun-gu
A foreign visitor takes part in a calamus water hair-washing experience during a Dano seasonal event in front of Ochon-daek at the National Folk Museum of Korea in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on June 17, 2026. AJP Han Jun-gu
Visitors take part in a calamus water hair-washing experience during a Dano seasonal event in front of Ochon-daek at the National Folk Museum of Korea in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on June 17, 2026. AJP Han Jun-gu