President Lee Jae Myung conferred the nation's highest order on U.S. President Donald Trump, who arrived in South Korea on Wednesday for a state visit, and gifted him a replica of an ancient gold crown.

Lee awarded Trump the Grand Order of Mugunghwa during a welcome ceremony at the Gyeongju National Museum, the venue of the two leaders' summit.

Trump is the first U.S. president to receive the highest order, which may legally be awarded to South Korean presidents, the heads of allied or friendly states and their spouses.

Ahead of the conferment, Deputy Foreign Minister for Protocol Affairs Kim Tae-jin said the award was an expression of respect and gratitude for the U.S. president's commitment to peace and the two nations' bilateral alliance.

The deputy minister said that the replica Silla Gold Crown, specially produced for Trump, symbolizes the spirit of Silla that brought peace to the Korean Peninsula and the golden age of the two sides' alliance.