China News Agency Nur-Sultan, May 1 Title: Director of the National Museum of Kazakhstan: How can civilizations learn from each other on the Silk Road?
China News Service reporter Zhang Shuo
China and Kazakhstan, which belong to the same Asian civilization, have maintained good cultural exchanges and cooperation over the years, and have constantly explored how to expand mutual learning among civilizations on the basis of respecting differences.
Recently, Muhameti Ulay, director of the National Museum of Kazakhstan (hereinafter referred to as the Kazakh National Museum), was interviewed exclusively by China News Agency's "East and West Question", revealing which cultural relics related to China are treasured by the largest museum in Central Asia, which cultural relics reflect the exchanges between different civilizations and cultures on the ancient Silk Road, and sharing the story of cooperation between Kazakhstan and China museums, talking about how different civilizations have expanded the cognitive boundary between different civilizations.
The interview transcript is summarized below:
China News Service: The Kazakh National Museum, which has a short history of establishment, is the largest museum in Central Asia. In your opinion, what role do museums play in Kazakh culture?
Muhamedui: Museums play a special role in the development of world culture. The Largest Museum in Central Asia was completed on 2 July 2013 as part of the implementation of the national "Cultural Heritage" programme. Today, the museum is a treasure trove of Kazakhstan's national historical and artistic collections. Not only that, but the museum also has important cultural relics restoration and research functions, as well as a comprehensive cultural center covering cultural education.
The comprehensive construction area of Ha Guobo is 74,000 square meters, and there are 14 exhibition halls in the museum, displaying more than 10,000 treasures. In terms of architectural scale, it is listed among the top ten museums in the world together with the Hermitage Museum in Russia, the Louvre Museum in France, and the Metropolitan Museum of Art in the United States.
National Museum of Kazakhstan. China News Service reporter Zhang Shuo photographed
China News Service reporter: "Golden Samurai" is the treasure of ha guobo's town hall, what is its historical and archaeological significance? The "Golden Samurai" was exhibited in China, why did you choose China as the exhibition country?
Muhamedui: The "Golden Warrior", commonly known as the "Golden Man", was excavated in 1969 by Akyshev, a well-known archaeologist and founder of the archaeological work of the Kazakh State, in the tomb of Issyk in Almaty. We directly link the "golden man" of the ancient Saka period with the history of the founding of Kazakhstan, which is the most important national treasure in the history of Kazakhstan.
The "Golden Man" costume is composed of more than 4,000 pieces of gold pieces, using a variety of metal processing techniques, which not only highlights the superb craftsmanship of the ancestors, but also has profound philosophical significance.
In addition to the gold artifacts found inside the tomb, the archaeological team also excavated a small silver bowl with an inscription on the bottom of the outer side. The inscription of the silver bowl consists of 26 letters, arranged horizontally in two rows at the bottom of the bowl. Experts have yet to decipher the meaning of the inscriptions, but what is certain is that they prove that the ancient Saka tribe had its own special alphabet and writing system.
So far, 9 "golden people" have been found in Kazakhstan. In 2017, in order to implement the "National Project Plan for Spiritual Rejuvenation", Ha Guobo launched the exhibition plan of "Golden Man Touring World Museum". The exhibition "History and Cultural Heritage of the Great Steppes" under the program travels to many places. In four years, the "Golden Man" has been exhibited in museums in China, Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, North Macedonia, Poland, South Korea, Turkey, Malaysia, India and Greece.
Hosting an exhibition in China is not an accidental choice. First of all, Kazakhstan and China are a permanent comprehensive strategic partnership, and the two countries support each other in political, economic and cultural development. Secondly, China has a very rich historical and cultural accumulation, and we have noticed that the Chinese people are deeply interested in foreign cultures. Facts have also proved that our judgment is correct. The exhibition attracted about one million Chinese visitors over a two-month period.
The "Golden Warrior" (commonly known as the "Golden Man") was excavated by Akieshev, a well-known archaeologist and founder of the archaeological work of the Kazakh state, in 1969 in the issyk tomb of Almaty. China News Service reporter Zhang Shuo photographed
China News Service: In recent years, exchanges between museums have become increasingly close, what is the cooperation between Kazakhstan and China?
Muhameduore: Kazakhstan has held many cultural events with Chinese officials. For example, memorandums of cooperation were signed with a number of cultural and educational institutions in China. These include the signing of memorandums of understanding with Xi'an Datang West City Museum in 2015, Shanghai Museum in 2017 and Northwestern Polytechnical University in 2018.
In addition, many cultural relics exhibitions have been jointly held with the Chinese side. As one of the people-to-people exchange activities of the China Pavilion at Expo 2017 Astana, the Terracotta Warriors and Horses Cultural Relics Exhibition of Qin Shi Huang was exhibited at the Harbin National Expo in June of that year. In July of the following year, as one of the exhibition destinations of the "Golden Man Touring World Museum", Ha Guobo held the exhibition "Great Grassland Heritage: Treasure Art" at the Shaanxi Provincial History Museum.
The two countries have also held various forms of seminars and seminars. For example, in 2018, the Chinese side held a high-level seminar on the field of museum work for the managers of many museums in Kazakhstan, and Kazakhstan sent a total of 15 people to participate in the field visits to Beijing, Changchun, Harbin and other places.
In general, the joint projects and exchange activities implemented by Kazakhstan and China have expanded cooperation in the cultural field between the two countries, promoted the popularization of historical and cultural heritage and the sharing of experience, and thus promoted the development of cross-cultural exchanges between countries.
In 2018, kazakhstan's exhibition "Heritage of the Great Steppe: Treasure Art" was held at the Shaanxi History Museum. The picture shows the costume and weapons of the "Golden Man" dressed up. China News Service reporter Zhang Yuan photographed
China News Service: Kazakhstan is an important node on the ancient Silk Road, which cultural relics or archaeological discoveries in the collection of the Kazakh National Museum can reflect the dialogue and exchange between different civilizations and cultures of the "Silk Road"?
Muhamedui: Kazakhstan and China are the propagators of the "Silk Road" civilization and the supporters of friendly exchanges between the people, and with the emergence of this ancient cross-continental trade route, signs of different historical civilizations have begun. The two Asian civilization countries, each of which has gone through different stages of historical development, have created a brilliant and unique spiritual and material civilization. The archaeological discoveries and cultural heritage of the two countries have also become the carrier and evidence of the brilliant Asian culture.
I believe that it is necessary to continue to strengthen the study of the topic of the "Silk Road", and it is necessary to increase the scientific interest in the great "Silk Road" that extends from China to Europe, which is of great significance for historical research. In addition, joint scientific surveys of historical and cultural heritage should be promoted, standards for the protection of heritage sites should be jointly formulated, and the application of digital technology in museums should be developed.
According to historical records, ancient cities such as Otrar and Taraz have become the most important locations in the Kazakhstan section of the "Silk Road", once the trade and cultural center of Central Asia, and it is thanks to the ancient Silk Road that the Kazakh steppe civilization has flourished. Hakokubonne has a collection of ceramics and glass vases excavated from sites such as Otrar and Taraz.
Fine collection of the Ha GuoBo Museum. China News Service reporter Zhang Shuo photographed
China News Service: Chinese readers are very concerned about what cultural relics related to China and Chinese culture are hidden in the Kazakh National Museum, and it is known that there is a stone stele engraved with Chinese characters.
Muhameduire: As one of the unique collections of Kakh national bo, this stone-carved monument bears witness to different histories of interaction.
The stone stele is engraved with the words "Monument of the Late Que Special Service", which was written in the new year of the New Century. The stele is made of marble, with an upper part decorated with arches and depicting three dragons. The stele is inscribed in two languages, Chinese and ancient Turkic, and the back (west side) is a Chinese part, which is a eulogy for Tang Xuanzong's tribute to the late Turkic khan Que Teqin, which is rumored to have been written by Tang Xuanzong himself. This inscription provides evidence of Kazakhstan's historical role on the "Silk Roads".
The inscription clearly depicts the state of mutual respect and cultural integration among the various ethnic groups, which has become one of the key factors in the socio-economic development of the region.
China News Service: This year marks the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Kazakhstan, how will the two countries further carry out civilizational exchanges and dialogues through cultural relics and museums?
Muhameduore: Different countries have their own historical trajectories and different understandings of each other's national cultures. I believe that there should be an open and inclusive attitude towards the perception of different cultures, which requires close interaction between countries. To that end, it is necessary to strengthen humanitarian exchanges on the basis of joint international and bilateral projects.
In recent years, Kazakhstan and China have conducted cross-regional cultural dialogue through joint museum exhibitions, festivals, language competitions, joint scientific expeditions, cultural relics restoration and other activities.
Language is the basis of "dialogue", and the people of the two countries help to enhance their cultural understanding of each other by learning each other's national languages. According to statistics, there are currently 5 Confucius Institutes in Kazakhstan. Since 2015, the "Kazakhstan Center" and the Kazakh Language Research Institute have been operating in many places in China. In addition, in Beijing, Xi'an, Shanghai and other foreign Chinese universities also have "Kazakh language and literature" majors, recruiting Chinese students.
In 2019, the "70 Years of Brilliant Achievements - Celebrating the 70th Anniversary of the Founding of New China" sponsored by the Chinese Embassy in Kazakhstan was held at the National Museum of Kazakhstan. The picture shows the local people watching the exhibition. Photo by China News Service reporter Wen Longjie
China News Service: Kazakhstan belongs to Asian civilization and is in an important position in Eurasia, how do you think we should continue to expand the boundaries of civilizational exchanges?
Muhameduure: In any country, the most urgent task in the development of civilization is to protect the historical and cultural value system and cultural identity inherited by the ancestors. From a historical point of view, cultural inheritance is the foundation of any national policy design. Each country should therefore create a complete system of social memory institutions for the restoration, preservation and popularization of historical and cultural heritage.
I would like to emphasize that exchanges are a way of mutual understanding and respect between friendly countries and peoples. This is also the significance of maintaining communication and enhancing intercultural communication, that is, countries can recognize and retain their respective cultural identities on the basis of respecting cultural differences.
The stability of any civilization depends not only on the existence of historical and cultural regions with spatial boundaries, but also on the unique spiritual values behind different historical and cultural phenomena, namely language, tradition, customs, religion and art.
To truly strengthen the exchange of Eastern civilizations, we should also attach importance to mutual respect and the overall coordination of national development plans. For example, the promotion of cooperation projects in important fields such as economy, energy, security, transportation, and culture. (End)
Respondent Profiles:
Muhameduure, director of the Kazakh National Museum, has served as the director of the National Academy of Arts of Kazakhstan and the Minister of Culture and Sports of Kazakhstan. He is a well-known politician and doctor of history and art history in Kazakhstan, and is also a composer who has directed many musical works. For his achievements in the field of culture and art, he has won the National Medal of Honor and international awards of Kazakhstan for many times. During his working career, he has been committed to multi-field cultural exchanges and cooperation with China, and he has also become a promoter, participant and witness of many cultural exchange activities between Kazakhstan and China. With the support of him and relevant Kazakh departments, the two countries have successfully held activities such as the "Chinese Culture Day" in Kazakhstan and the Silk Road International Film Festival.