In November 1924, Puyi, the last emperor of the Qing Dynasty, was expelled from the Forbidden City. Although he fled in a hurry, Puyi still secretly carried a lot of cultural relics in the Qing Palace. Of these artifacts, the most valuable one has a market capitalization of more than 1 billion. How many cultural relics did Puyi bring out? What are the artifacts with a market capitalization of more than 1 billion? Where do they end up? Welcome to like and comment on the collection, and understand the origin of the last emperor Puyi and cultural relics.
What treasure did Puyi bring out?
The last emperor fled
On November 5, 1924, a group of warlords suddenly appeared outside the Forbidden City, led by them
Directly related to the warlord Feng Yuxiang
。 3 hours later, I was still the lord of the Forbidden City just now
Puyi
He could only pack his bags and was expelled from the Forbidden City along with other Qing royal relatives.
But Puyi's mood was not so bad, because he had already anticipated all this, and he was very fortunate. Because Feng Yuxiang's official documents still allow him to carry some private property when he escapes from the Forbidden City. Among these private properties, the most valuable of course are the various cultural relics left over from the Qing Dynasty royal family.
According to incomplete statistics, the number of various cultural relics brought out of the palace by Puyi is at least more than 3,000, and a total of 70 or 80 large wooden boxes are loaded
。
Puyi fled
After being expelled from the palace, Puyi settled in Zhangyuan and Jingyuan in the Tianjin Concession. When he lived in Jingyuan, Puyi also hired people in his residence
Two large vaults were set up, each with small vaults divided into categories
There are various cultural relics, such as calligraphy paintings, jewelry and jade, gold and silver utensils and some precious orphan books. After that, Puyi went to puppet Manchukuo to ascend the throne, and after Japan's defeat, he fled to the Soviet Union and was later repatriated, but at this time, the cultural relics carried by Puyi could still fill two or three large wooden boxes.
Precious literature logistics scattered around the world
So how precious are the cultural relics carried by Puyi? Take Puyi's escape from Tianjin to Changchun as an example, when in the field of cultural relics collection, there were many valuable authentic works, which were also called
"Northeast goods"
。 There are many collectors who are willing to come to see it no matter how far away they hear that it is "Northeast goods", and "Northeast goods" is synonymous with good things. These are actually precious cultural relics handed down from the Imperial Family of the Qing Dynasty, all of which were sold by Puyi.
cultural relic
Many of these precious cultural relics are famous calligraphy and paintings that we are all very familiar with. Like what
Tang Dynasty Zhou Fang's "Drawing of a Fan Lady", The Northern Song Dynasty King Xi Meng's "Thousand Miles of Rivers and Mountains", and the Eastern Jin Dynasty famous Gu Kaizhi's "Luoshen Futu"
Although this "Roselle Futu" is only a facsimile of the Song Dynasty, its degree of refinement can be called valuable.
Tang Dynasty painter Yan Liben's "Step Map"
The real thing was also sold to the cultural relics market by Puyi. Fortunately, these two famous paintings were later recovered and collected in museums in China.
After The surrender of Japan in 1945, puyi's puppet emperor of Manchukuo could not continue, and after the desire for restoration was shattered, Puyi had to flee here in a hurry. However, in the rush, he did not forget to bring some famous calligraphy and paintings, the famous five generations of Xu Hong
"Lishu Thousand Words"
In the process of Puyi's entourage scrambling, it was torn to pieces and was difficult to recover.
《Step Chart》
After The surrender of Japan, Puyi continued to flee, only to be captured by the Soviet Red Army at the Tonghua Railway Station. Because Puyi once cooperated with the Japanese and became the puppet emperor of puppet Manchukuo, and the Soviet Union was a staunch anti-fascist country. Puyi was very afraid of the Soviet soldiers inflicting harm on him. So Puyi gave a large number of jewels to Soviet officers and guards to please them in exchange for a relatively comfortable living environment.
After the founding of New China, he was even more afraid that China would try him as a Japanese war criminal, and he was unwilling to return to China, and the value of the Sacrifice to the Soviet Government was about 47. 30,000 rubles of various treasures, hoping that the Soviet government will approve his visa and let him stay in the USSR permanently.
《Map of the Upper River of the Qingming Dynasty》
However, in 1950, the Soviet Union sent him back to China. At the time of the handover between China and the Soviet Union, soviet officials also gave China some cultural relics donated to them by Puyi, including the Northern Song Dynasty painter Zhang Zeduan
，
And this "Qingming River Map" is still a real relic of the Song Dynasty
。 Experts from the State Administration of Cultural Heritage were very emotional when they identified it. After all, "Qingming On the River" is the first of China's top ten famous paintings, which is of great value.
But this cultural relic is not the most precious,
The most precious cultural relics have been hidden in Puyi's cotton clothes and have been kept close to him for 26 years
。 Even in the hardest days, he did not sell this artifact. Puyi has undergone many body searches and detentions, and this treasure is still intact. After Puyi returned to New China, he chose to hand over this treasure to the government. What is this artifact? It is the treasure of Qianlong,
Tian Huang Triple Seal
There is a saying in the world of cultural relics called,
"Gold is easy to get, tian huang is hard to find!"
This Tian Huang said
Tian Huangshi
。 The ancients liked to use jade to carve objects, and Tian Huangshi was the highest quality of all jade. Tian Huangshi is an excellent material for carving seals, and since the Ming Dynasty, this Tian Huangshi has been strongly sought after. What was carved out of Tian Huangshi was pursued by collectors, and the price was hyped into a sky-high price.
This TianHuang Triple Seal of Qianlong was carved with Tian Huangshi, and the carving technique was very exquisite, and the three jade seals were connected by chains. This chain was not added later, but was also carved from the same piece of Tian Huangshi. The carving technique is amazing, coupled with the rarity of raw materials,
Qianlong liked it very much, and engraved the words "Only Essence and Only One" on the square jade seal, and the word "Lotte" on the round jade seal. After carving, the Qianlong Emperor even put it on the pillow when he slept
In Puyi's mind, tianhuang sanlian seal is not only a treasure, but also a symbol of the imperial family of the Qing Dynasty. Putting this precious treasure in the hands of the Chinese government also means that Puyi has completely given up his identity as an emperor and become an ordinary citizen.
The market price of Tian Huang Sanlian Xi was once 1 billion
Even when Puyi was the poorest, he did not move his mind to betray Tian Huang Sanlianxi.
So how exactly did Puyi transfer so many cultural relics out of the Forbidden City? Could it be that when he withdrew from the Forbidden City, Feng Yuxiang watched as he took away so much treasure? This is not the case.
How Puyi transferred cultural relics
In 1911
Revolution
Outbreak, the second year Puyi announced his abdication, when Puyi was just 6 years old. Because of his voluntary abdication, the Republic of China promised not to force the Qing imperial family to move out of the Forbidden City, allowing them to continue their lives in the imperial palace. However, due to the collapse of the feudal imperial system, the imperial family of the Qing Dynasty lost the support of taxes, and the national treasury was empty after years of war.
Although the government of the Republic of China decided to provide it to Puyi and others
4 million silver dollars per year
But the National Revolutionary Army itself also fought every day, stretched thin, and gave Puyi less and less money every year. At that time, there were 7 masters in the Forbidden City,
There were more than 1,000 eunuchs serving these 7 masters, and there were 200 people in the imperial dining room alone
。 Statistics from the Ministry of the Interior show that
In the fourth year of the Republic of China, the Forbidden City spent 2.64 million taels of silver
Later, although it became less and less, it also spent at least 1 million taels of silver per year.
Puyi is in the Forbidden City
So how did Puyi, or the Qing royal family, support such a large expenditure? One of the easiest ways to do that is
Reselling artifacts
。 The Qianlong Emperor himself was very fond of cultural relics and famous calligraphy and paintings, and in the Three Dynasties of Kang Yongqian, due to the entry into the prosperous era, many commoners also had a large number of precious cultural relics in their hands, and Qianlong ordered the people to hand over cultural relics, and these confiscated cultural relics were preserved in the Forbidden City
Jianfu Palace
middle.
Puyi got married in 1922, the wedding still adopted the royal specifications, the banquet was held for a total of 5 days, and invited Chinese and foreign guests, but also invited many important members of the National Government and military police. But such a feast requires a large amount of money, how does this money come from? That's why
The minister of internal affairs mortgaged the gold and silver jewelry in the treasury of the Qing Dynasty in exchange for 400,000 pieces of cash and held this wedding banquet
Treasury of the Qing Dynasty
At that time, in order to look good, it was said that it was a mortgage. But soon, the Qing government found that these things could not be recovered at all, and the usual expenses became a problem. In order to solve this problem, the Interior Ministry of the Qing Court even began to auction off these cultural relics in exchange for money to maintain the main life of the people in the Forbidden City. At that time, this matter was too fierce, and Puyi, who was just 16 years old, also heard about it, and he ordered an inventory of Jianfu Palace. But that night, the Jianfu Palace caught fire.
After this incident, Puyi was also keenly aware that his good life was originally exchanged for reselling cultural relics. Among these people who resell cultural relics, there are many people who are full of private pockets and secretly embezzlement.
Instead of letting them handle it, it is better to sell it yourself so that the cash can go into your own pocket
Moreover, these cultural relics belong to their own assets and should not have fallen into the hands of others.
Cultural relics sold by Puyi
So how can you take these treasures into your own hands? After all, Puyi is an emperor, and it is impossible to personally go to the cultural relics market and sell cultural relics. So between July and December 1922,
Puyi gave about 210 ancient books, 1285 famous calligraphy and paintings, 145 seals, and countless other treasures to his younger brother Pujie
。 There are also many calligraphy and paintings, which were taken away by some officials in the name of borrowing, and never sent back.
By 1923, Puyi's behavior intensified, and even began to mortgage cultural relics, exchange money from the bank, and it was carried out many times a year, especially when a large amount of expenses were required during the New Year's Festival. In Tianjin and Changchun, he still gave a lot of rewards and luxury, relying on the sale of cultural relics. Puyi's behavior has caused a large number of cultural relics in China to flow out, and there are still many treasures that can only be preserved in museums in other countries. What are your thoughts on this? Welcome to favorite likes and comments.