Editor's note
In the river of time, the museum is like a quiet harbor, carrying the memory of history and telling the inheritance of civilization. Why do we need museums? Because it is the meeting point of the past and the future, and it is a holy place to touch the pulse of history and feel the influence of culture. Nowadays, more and more young people are keen to visit museums, they are not only attracted by the precious collections, but also moved by the cultural heritage and unique charm carried by the museum.
Approaching the "5.18 International Museum Day", state-owned museums in the province have planned wonderful activities to lead the public to appreciate the charm of cultural treasures. At the same time, the folk museum is also poised to develop, attracting people's attention with its unique treasure and profound cultural heritage.
Born on the island of Qiong, from the deep mountains, and into the court, they are the collection of the Emperor's House. Now, after a hundred years, they have returned to their homeland, and they will tell their relatives and friends on the shore of the South China Sea about the vicissitudes of history and the inheritance of culture.
They are Hainan products from the Forbidden City. On May 18th, the Hainan Provincial Department of Tourism, Culture, Radio, Television and Sports and the Palace Museum jointly sponsored the "Li Hai Qiongzhen - Hainan Cultural Relics from the Palace Museum" will be launched at the Hainan Provincial Museum. Hainan Daily reporters explore the exhibition in advance and take you to see the highlights and characteristics of the exhibition.
Qianlong silver roasted blue conch water. Courtesy of the Palace Museum
first
The Forbidden City held a large-scale exhibition of Hainan customs and specialties
During the Western Han Dynasty, Hainan was officially included in the territory of the Central Plains Dynasty, and the trade between Hainan and the mainland had a new development, and it also began to pay tribute to the imperial court. Ban Gu recorded in the "Book of Han and the Legend of the Western Regions": "Therefore, if you can see the rhino cloth and tortoiseshell, the seven counties of Zhuya were built. At that time, the rhino, tortoiseshell, wide cloth and other precious products produced in Hainan were the treasures that the rulers and nobles liked very much, and in order to be able to obtain these precious treasures, "the seven counties of Zhuya were built".
After the Sui and Tang dynasties, Hainan's Tugong was much richer than that of the Han Dynasty, and historical records included gold, silver, beads, tortoiseshell, galangal, five-color rattan plates, banbu, etc. In the Song Dynasty, Hainan exported local products mainly including spices, sumac, jibei, betel nut, red and white vine, etc., and a large number of coconuts were also exported to the Central Plains across the sea. In the Ming and Qing dynasties, the yellow pear and agarwood collected from the depths of Li Mountain became the precious materials for the royal family and nobles.
In this exhibition, the first batch of 31 Hainan products from the Palace Museum, including Huanghuali furniture, agarwood ornaments, tortoiseshell stationery, coconut pearls and other cultural relics, not only shows the exquisite craftsmanship and unique charm of Hainan specialties, but also makes people feel the important position of Hainan customs in the history of ancient Chinese material culture.
Yellow rosewood chair. Courtesy of the Palace Museum
"This is the first large-scale exhibition of Hainan specialties held by the Forbidden City." Zhou Jingnan, a researcher at the Palace Museum, told a reporter from Hainan Daily that the exhibition is full of pictures and texts, not only with physical highlights, but also with the support of poems, scrolls, records of the Ministry of Internal Affairs and other relevant documents.
For example, the coconut with emerald decoration of the five-sided Buddha pearls on display, the Qing Palace Internal Affairs Office has a clear record of it: "On the ninth day of the fourth month of the ninth year of Qianlong, Bai Shixiu, the treasurer of the jade department, came to the eunuch Hu Shijie to hand over a plate of coconut prayer beads (two coral Buddha heads, a white jade Buddha head, a coral tower, and an agate bean)."
The main body of this string of pearls is 108 coconut beads, each of which is inlaid with a Buddha image. According to Zhou Jingnan, according to the Qing palace inventory report, the pearl was originally stored in a long wooden box in the apse of Yongshou Palace in the Qing Palace, and was stored in the box together with several treasures. Considering that Yongshou Palace was a place to store the relics of the late emperor and queen in the Qing Dynasty, it is speculated that this pearl was also stored in Yongshou Palace as a relic of the first emperor.
There's a lot to see
Hainan scenery is not only a material treasure, but also a historical witness
"The biggest feature of the exhibition is that in addition to the well-known Hainan huanghuali and agarwood, there are also many cultural relics made of Hainan coconut, tortoiseshell, betel nut and other raw materials, which are full of 'Hainan flavor'." Zhou Jingnan said.
Walking through the exhibition hall, the audience can see a number of exhibits of coconut and betel nut wood carvings, such as coconut wood carving cloud bat pattern inlaid gold bowl, coconut wood carving eggplant snuff bottle, Wanli betel nut wood carving entwined branch pattern lacquer pen holder, betel nut wood carving double dragon play bead landscape figure pattern round box, etc.
Betel nut wood inlaid with silver carved characters and verses set cups. Courtesy of the Palace Museum
The Palace Museum's collection of cultural relics covers ancient and modern times, with a total collection of more than 180 pieces (sets), which can be called a treasure house of art. "We carefully selected from the cultural relics system of the Palace Museum, and the cultural relics such as betel nut, tortoiseshell, and coconut were clearly recorded as being produced in Hainan." Zhou Jingnan said that "produced in Hainan" mainly refers to the production of raw materials in Hainan, these excellent raw materials are transported from Hainan to the inland, and after the meticulous carving of skilled craftsmen, they become exquisite handicrafts.
Among the many cultural relics on display this time, Zhou Jingnan specifically mentioned a yellow rosewood carved round pestle. He believes that this artifact is exquisite in craftsmanship and unique in style, and it is worth "taking a closer look" to visitors.
"The Huanghuali round pestle is also known as the Huanghuali small stool, which was built by the Qing Dynasty Internal Affairs Office." Zhou Jingnan introduced that the combination of Chinese and Western styles and drawing on ancient and modern craft styles are the highlights of this cultural relic. This stool as a whole is stocky and atmospheric, and the surface relief integrates the bronze plagiarism and cloud pattern, Western flowers and Han Dynasty jade ornamentation, forming a unique style of Chinese and Western style, but the whole does not have a sense of disobedience, and it looks very coordinated.
Agarwood carved grape pattern wash. Courtesy of the Palace Museum
In February this year, he also came to Hainan to go deep into the Li Mountains and into the tropical rainforest to look for traces of Hainan scenery such as huanghuali, agarwood, and betel nut. "I collected a lot of information when curating the exhibition, and after I visited Hainan later, I strengthened my confidence in doing a good job in this exhibition. Hainan is rich in products and profound heritage, so we must do a good job in this exhibition! Zhou Jingnan said.
It is understood that the exhibition will be on display until February 2025, including the first batch of 31 cultural relics, and a total of 68 Hainan cultural relics from the Palace Museum will be displayed.
Areca nut wood root pen holder. Courtesy of the Palace Museum
From the Tugong of the Han Dynasty, to the spice trade of the Song Dynasty, to the precious timber trade of the Ming and Qing dynasties, every step is a close link between Hainan and the Central Plains and the people of all ethnic groups. To this day, the Palace Museum still retains a certain number of cultural relics made of agarwood, pear, coconut, betel nut, tortoiseshell and other materials, covering various categories from furniture and stationery to cultural toys and jewelry.
"These precious Hainan specialties are not only material treasures, but also historical witnesses, and they carry the profound history of exchanges and exchanges between the people of Hainan Li and Han nationality for thousands of years." Zhou Jingnan said.
List of non-state-owned museums in Hainan Province (partial)
Hainan Lei Gongmo Meteorite Museum
Hainan Ming and Qing Furniture Museum
Hainan Splendid Weaving Shell Li Brocade Museum
Hainan Provincial Agarwood Museum
Hainan Provincial Treasure Museum
Hainan Huanghuali Museum, Hainan Province
Sanya Folk Museum
Sanya Museum of Natural History
Sanya Yongtao Huanghuali Museum
Sanya Agarwood Museum
Sanya Maritime Military Museum
Hainan Haotian Art Museum
Hainan Tianya Tropical Rainforest Museum
Chengmai County Tianfu Sports Museum
Baisha Valley Museum, Foluo Town, Ledong Li Autonomous County
Hainan Rungu Art Museum
List of state-owned museums in Hainan Province (partial)
Hainan Provincial Museum
South China Sea Museum, China (Hainan).
Hainan Provincial Museum of Nationalities
Qiongtai Academy Museum
Hainan Provincial Agricultural Reclamation Museum
Hainan Railway Museum
City and county museums