A pair of lavish Korean screens have been unveiled at the Honolulu Academy of Arts after the century-old paintings were conserved by the South Korean government.

The "Cranes and Peaches" screens are among the largest, most opulent survivors of the imperial court of the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910). Standing more than 7 feet tall and decorated with gold and expensive mineral pigments, the screens feature symbols of longevity and may have been a birthday gift or given to otherwise offer wishes for long life.

The screens have been part of the Academy's permanent collection since 1927, but couldn't be displayed for decades because they were at risk due to flaking pigment and gold leaf.

However, in 2006, South Korea's National Research Institute of Cultural Heritage offered to conserve them as part of a program to protect Korean artworks in foreign collections. Half of the $100,000 treatment was paid for by the South Korean government.

They were treated for more than a year at the Gochang Conservation Institute, one of South Korea's top painting conservation centers, then displayed as the focus of a special exhibition at the new National Museum of Seoul in 2007.

The Feb. 18 unveiling marked the first time they'd been displayed in Honolulu since they have been repaired and the first time the Academy has devoted an entire gallery to a single work of art. The exhibition will only last three months.