In the past two days, in Bendigo, a small city in Victoria, Australia, a major event has occurred that has caused a sensation in the Chinese community:
A dragon dance in a local museum has been deliberately vandalized, and the police are making every effort to arrest the suspect.
(Destroyed dragon dance "Dragon")
The reason for the sensation is that the dragon dance has been traveling from China to Australia for 123 years.
According to the museum, this is the oldest surviving dragon dance in the world, and it is also a witness and symbol of the history of the Chinese in Australia.
On the eve of 1901, the dragon dance, named "Loong", which was ordered from Foshan, Guangdong, crossed the ocean and was transported to the small Victorian town of Bendigo, known as the "Golden Mountain", to appear in the local Easter procession.
("Dragon" debuts Bendigo)
At that time, Bendigo was a gathering place for the gold rush that emerged in the early 20th century, and a large number of Chinese came to settle in Bendigo, accounting for 20% of the local population.
As a result, the dragon dance quickly became one of the favorite shows of the local residents.
After its debut, the Dragon, which came all the way from his homeland, settled in Bendigo, and was indispensable for the annual Easter parade and performance.
(Bendigo Dragon Dance in the 30s)
Bendigo residents have also gradually embraced the dragon dance as an annual repertoire for Easter.
The "dragon" participated in the performance every year, and was not retired until the 70s of the last century, after which it was placed in the local Golden Dragon Museum as a historical artifact for everyone to visit.
(In the 70s, "dragons" participated in the dragon dance parade)
In 2001, in order to celebrate the centenary of the founding of Melbourne, the "dragon", as a living fossil of the dragon dance, made a temporary comeback and participated in the parade celebration that year.
("Dragon" returns to participate in the parade)
A survey many years ago showed that the "dragon" is the oldest surviving complete dragon dance in the world, and it has been preserved since 1901.
Thanks to its preservation and the Bendigo Government's meticulous maintenance, the dragon was inscribed on the Victorian Heritage List a few years ago.
As a century-old dragon dance, cultural relics restoration experts have maintained the original appearance of the "dragon" to the greatest extent.
It is crafted from silk, mirrors, bamboo, kingfisher feathers, and papier-mâché.
(The "Dragon" retains its appearance from a hundred years ago)
Every once in a while, cultural relics experts will carefully collect trivial materials, maintain the parts on the dragon's body, and reinforce loose areas.
One of the most difficult aspects of maintaining the dragon is to protect its scales, which are made of silk and are too fragile to be repaired by stitching.
The maintenance team has come up with a number of options, including working with materials schools at well-known universities.
In the end, the team used the method of applying matching colors to the scales and using tiny ink, seaweed binder to hold the pieces of paper in place where they needed to be repaired, to prevent the silk from deteriorating.
(Restoring scales is a big job)
It can be said that in Bendigo, both the government and the private sector are vigorously defending the survival of the "dragon", not only because it represents the culture of the Chinese community, but also because it has become part of the local culture of Bendigo.
Over the past 100 years, the annual Easter Dragon Dance Parade has evolved from the original all-Chinese dragon dance team to the dragon dance team with the participation of all ethnic groups.
(The original all-Chinese dragon dance team)
(Today's dragon dance team composed of various ethnic groups)
Over the past 100 years, the "dragon" has become a symbol of local multiculturalism and unity and progress.
Unfortunately, just last week, a group of vandals appeared that not only damaged this ancient artifact, but also dealt a blow to the harmonious ethnic relations in the area.
On May 5, a man and a woman broke into the Golden Dragon Museum and splashed many cultural relics in the museum with an oily liquid.
After the incident, the staff counted that the two suspects destroyed cultural relics worth about 100,000 Australian dollars (480,000 yuan), including the oldest surviving dragon dance, the "dragon".
At the same time, some national style sculptures and dozens of Chinese paintings were also damaged nearby.
At present, the police are investigating the details of the damage to cultural relics such as the dragon dance.
(The sculpture was also splashed with oil)
According to sources, the police initially determined that it was a deliberate sabotage, possibly due to religion or culture.
The Chinese Australian community condemned the act and expressed concern about the extreme vandalism.
(A century-old dragon)
I hope the police can solve the case as soon as possible, so that this ancient cultural relic can survive safely...