The Hong Kong Palace Museum opened its doors to the public on July 3. The opening was part of the 25th anniversary celebration of the establishment of the HKSAR.
Visitors were in queue from early morning, with the museum opening its door after a one-day delay due to a typhoon hit. The Hong Kong Palace Museum is a brand new museum dedicated to Chinese art and culture. It presents more than 900 treasures from the Beijing Palace Museum. Among these treasures, 166 of them are first-class cultural relics (文物) of China.
Many of these treasures are on display（陳列出來）in Hong Kong for the first time. They represent the finest objects of Chinese art and culture. Spanning nearly 5,000 years of Chinese history, these national treasures include painting, calligraphy, ceramics, jade, costume and textile, jewellery, rare books, and much more. Some of them have never been shown to the public before.
The museum houses a total of nine galleries. Five galleries host thematic exhibitions featuring Chinese art and treasures from the Palace Museum in Beijing. Another four galleries are devoted to（用於） special exhibitions featuring Chinese art collections in both Hong Kong and other parts of the world.
This local version of the Beijing Palace Museum does not use traditional-style bricks and tiles（瓦片）, which are elements typically seen in ancient Chinese architectures（建築）. Instead, through the mix of modern architectural techniques（技術）and traditional design concepts, one can still feel its classical oriental charms.
Located in the heart of Kowloon, the Palace Museum overlooks the waterfront of the West Kowloon Cultural District and the beautiful Victoria harbour. It will certainly become another cultural landmark （地標）of the city.
White-glazed Boy-shaped Pillow
One of the rare treasures on display in the Hong Kong Palace Museum is a white-glazed boy-shaped pillow（白釉孩兒枕 ）dating back to the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127). The pillow is shaped like a baby boy lying with the face down on a couch. The boy’s back is used as the surface of the pillow. The boy wears a suit of clothing including a long brocaded（錦緞）top. He folds his arms to support his head. His feet raise and cross with one another. The side of the couch is pressed with patterns and decorated with panels. One side is ornamented（裝飾）with raised hornless dragon; the opposite side is plain; the other two sides are adorned with ruyi（如意）.
The pillow was made by Ding kiln (定窯), one of the five most famous kilns in the Song Dynasty. In ancient China, jade and porcelain pillows were popular because people believed they could comfort the body, soothe the spirit（怡神）and even play the function of “clearing one’s eyesight and benefitting one’s eyeball.” Porcelain pillow originated in the Sui Dynasty（隋代）and flourished（興盛）in the Tang, Song and Yuan dynasties.
According to the artwork description, this boy-shaped pillow was deeply loved by Emperor Qianlong (乾隆皇帝) of the Qing Dynasty. The emperor loved the pillow so much that he even wrote a poem about it. There are only two pillows of this kind in the world today. One is in Beijing Palace Museum and the other in Taipei National Palace Museum. The one currently on display in Hong Kong is loaned by the Beijing Palace Museum for three months. After three months, it will be returned to Beijing.
The Forbidden City now
The Hong Kong Palace Museum is a local version of China’s Palace Museum, which is housed inside the Forbidden City（紫禁城）at the heart of Beijing.
In the past, the Forbidden City was an imperial palace complex in the capital. As its name suggests, the palace is a “city” in its own right. Measuring 961 metres in length and 753 metres in width, the Forbidden City is composed of 90 palace compounds（樓群；大院）including 98 buildings and surrounded by a moat（護城河）as wide as 52 metres.
The Forbidden City was built in the 1400s during the Ming Dynasty. It was so named because access to the area was barred（禁止）to most of the subjects （臣民） of the kingdom. The emperor alone could enter any section of the palace at will. Even the imperial family or senior government officials were permitted only limited access.
After its completion in 1420, for almost five centuries, the Forbidden City had been home to 24 Chinese emperors, their families and servants. It also served as the ceremonial（禮節或儀式上的）and political centre of the Chinese government. Today, the Beijing Palace Museum is housed in the Forbidden City. It was built in 1925 after Puyi（溥儀）, the last emperor of China, was expelled（被逐出）from the palace. Although it is no longer an imperial palace, it remains one of the most important cultural heritage（遺產）sites in China. It has an average of 15 million visitors annually. This makes it one of the most visited museums in the world. Now it is home to over 1.8 million pieces of Chinese art, mostly from the imperial collection of the Ming and Qing dynasties. It attracts an average of 80,000 visitors per day. For many, it is a place where one can explore and appreciate（欣賞）the history and beauty of Chinese art and culture.
What is Chinese art?
China has a very long and ancient tradition （傳統）of fine arts dating back to 10,000 BC.
Chinese art is marked by many different types, ranging from calligraphy（書法）, poetry, painting, jade carving, porcelain （瓷器）, sculpture, pottery（陶藝）, bronze work, and many others. It begins from the ancient dynasties to the modern age. Different eras and dynasties had their own specialties（專長）. And different styles and subjects were influenced by Chinese philosophy, religion and people’s way of life. Elsewhere in the world, artistic traditions have died out and been replaced by other styles or preferences over time. In China, there was a developing style and evolving techniques that were unique to the Chinese. This makes it one of the longest artistic traditions in the world.
Chinese culture has always valued nature. The ancient Chinese used paints, dyes, brushes, paper, stone, bronze, copper, gold, silver, jade, clay and other materials found in nature to create beautiful art.
Calligraphy and landscape painting (山水畫) are two of the most important types of Chinese artwork. Both Chinese calligrapher and painter use essentially the same materials – brush, ink, and silk or paper. Four Treasures of Study (文房四寶) is an expression used to refer to the ink brush, inkstick, paper, and inkstone（硯）used by Chinese artists.
Calligraphy
This is art of handwriting. The ancient Chinese considered writing an important form of art. Calligraphers would practice for years to learn to write perfectly. It is a highly stylish (格調高雅的)form of writing.
Poetry
Poetry (詩歌) too was an important form of Chinese art. All educated people were expected to write poetry. Li Bai（李白）, Du Fu （杜甫）, Su Shi （蘇軾）are considered among the best ancient poets. During the Tang Dynasty poetry became so important that writing poetry was part of the examinations to become a civil servant and work for the government.
Painting
Chinese painting was often inspired by poetry and combined with calligraphy. Many paintings were sceneries that featured mountains, homes, birds, trees, and water.
Jade carving
Jade (玉；翡翠)was regarded as the most precious and beautiful stone in ancient China. It was carved as early as some 6,000 years ago. It has been carved into jewellery, ornaments, small sculptures, and everyday objects from the earliest recorded time. Early pieces have engraved linear designs, but over the centuries a more sophisticated (複雜而精密的) appearance with many contours (輪廓；外形) and niches was achieved.
Porcelain
Fine Chinese porcelain was also an important part of ancient Chinese art. Porcelain was first made in China during the Tang Dynasty (618-907). During the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), blue and white vases became very popular and highly priced. They were sold to the rich people throughout Europe and Asia. Chinese vases and jars were known about throughout the world because they were traded or given as gifts to foreign countries.
Sculpture
There are some very impressive sculptures from ancient China. One great example is the Terracotta Army（兵馬俑）. It dates from 221-210 BC. The Terracotta Army was made for the burial of the first emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang（秦始皇）. It was done to protect the emperor after life. It includes thousands of soldiers and horses. The sculptures are life sized. Each sculpture of soldier has been given a unique (獨一無二的) face. The minutest details such as their uniform, weapon, and armour have been well reflected.
