The National Palace Museum Open Data Platform

Exhibit

The term "heavenly scent" comes from Ding Wei’s (966-1037) Record of Heavenly Scent of the Northern Song period, the earliest text in China specifically dealing with incense. Beginning in the Ming dynasty (1368-1644), agarwood incense became regarded as the highest grade. This source of incense is made by first creating a gash in an aquilaria tree. Then following insect infestation and mold infection, the tree will produce a resin in response. The resin, known as "aloes" (or "agar"), accumulates after a period of time to form resin-embedded wood. The tree is found mainly in the tropical areas of Guangdong and Guangxi Provinces, Hainan Island, Vietnam, and other places in Southeast Asia. Due to different ways of cultivating resin-embedded wood, it can yield "honey agarwood" or "cream agarwood," which have a distinctively light and refreshing scent. For many centuries, agarwood incense has been prized and used in daily life, religious activities, and even medicine. In addition to make incense, unique forms of appreciating and wearing the wood have evolved over the centuries, making it a luxury item among the wealthy and nobility as well as an important part of incense culture by imbuing a scholarly atmosphere.As the title of this exhibition suggests, not only does it offer audiences an opportunity to appreciate the beauty of craftsmanship related to incense objects but also to explore the unforgettable scent of this material likened to heavenly fragrance. 

Exhibit

Vessels made of purple-granule clay, generally refer to vessels made with the refined clay rich in iron that is excavated from Yixing County, Jiangsu Province in present day. The art works adopt clay slices that jointed together to take shape, and went through firing in high temperatures ranging from 1100 to 1200 Celsius degree to achieve the final products. Among all the artworks created by the potters in Yixing County, the Yixing teapots were the most celebrated by the socialites and elites in the Ming and Qing dynasty. The Study on Teapots of Yangxian, written by Chou Gaoqi (? -1654) mentioned that, “In the late one hundred years, teapots made of silver, tin or porcelain from the Fujian and Henan Province are valued less, and the most praised are the ones made with Yixing clay.” Lee Yu (1611-1680) also gave his comment on the teapots in the Occasional Notes with Leisure Motions that “No teapots are more exquisite than those from Yangxian(the ancient name of Yixing).” Even the Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799) noted specifically in his poem Rhythm of Boiled Snow and Layered Old that “Tea made with melted snow in Yixing teapot is impeccable.” It is evident to determine that Yixing teapots were not only exclusive to the teahouses of cultural elites, but also stood for the excellence that was sought after by common people and royal emperors.

The exhibition is entitled “The Phenomenon of Yixing Ware.” There are four sections to present the exhibits accordingly. The first is “ Tea Vessels from the Royal Court,” which displays the exquisite enamelled Yixing tea vessels in. “The Charm of Painted Enamels” is the second section, consisting of art objects with painted enamels on porcelain, metal or glass wares and illustrating the aspects of crafts and cultural interactions where the production background of tea vessels in painted enamels on the Yixing ware body was situated. The third section, “Ware of Yixing, Ou, and Guang” focuses on interpreting art works defined as the Yixing ware and further demonstrates how the understanding of Yixing ware evolved throughout the time. Finally, the fourth part, “The Ceremonial Event of Tea”, arranges a tea ceremony devoted to the Emperor based on the collection of the National Palace Museum and imagines the possible features of tea events in the Qing court.

Through this exhibition, the curatorial team genuinely wishes to introduce the essence of Yixing ware collected by the National Palace Museum to the audience. Furthermore, the audience is encouraged to experience the tea ceremonies brought by the trend of Yixing ware and to appreciate the excellent craftsmanship. 

Exhibit

 Vessels made of purple-granule clay, generally refer to vessels made with the refined clay rich in iron that is excavated from Yixing County, Jiangsu Province in present day. The art works adopt clay slices that jointed together to take shape, and went through firing in high temperatures ranging from 1100 to 1200 Celsius degree to achieve the final products. Among all the artworks created by the potters in Yixing County, the Yixing teapots were the most celebrated by the socialites and elites in the Ming and Qing dynasty. The Study on Teapots of Yangxian, written by Chou Gaoqi (? -1654) mentioned that, “In the late one hundred years, teapots made of silver, tin or porcelain from the Fujian and Henan Province are valued less, and the most praised are the ones made with Yixing clay.” Lee Yu (1611-1680) also gave his comment on the teapots in the Occasional Notes with Leisure Motions that “No teapots are more exquisite than those from Yangxian(the ancient name of Yixing).” Even the Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799) noted specifically in his poem Rhythm of Boiled Snow and Layered Old that “Tea made with melted snow in Yixing teapot is impeccable.” It is evident to determine that Yixing teapots were not only exclusive to the teahouses of cultural elites, but also stood for the excellence that was sought after by common people and royal emperors.

The exhibition is entitled “The Phenomenon of Yixing Ware.” There are four sections to present the exhibits accordingly. The first is “ Tea Vessels from the Royal Court,” which displays the exquisite enamelled Yixing tea vessels in. “The Charm of Painted Enamels” is the second section, consisting of art objects with painted enamels on porcelain, metal or glass wares and illustrating the aspects of crafts and cultural interactions where the production background of tea vessels in painted enamels on the Yixing ware body was situated. The third section, “Ware of Yixing, Ou, and Guang” focuses on interpreting art works defined as the Yixing ware and further demonstrates how the understanding of Yixing ware evolved throughout the time. Finally, the fourth part, “The Ceremonial Event of Tea”, arranges a tea ceremony devoted to the Emperor based on the collection of the National Palace Museum and imagines the possible features of tea events in the Qing court.

Through this exhibition, the curatorial team genuinely wishes to introduce the essence of Yixing ware collected by the National Palace Museum to the audience. Furthermore, the audience is encouraged to experience the tea ceremonies brought by the trend of Yixing ware and to appreciate the excellent craftsmanship.

Exhibit

"Up the River During Qingming" is a masterpiece of realistic genre painting, with many copies of it being done over the centuries. This version, a collaborative effort of five Qing court artists: Chen Mei, Sun Hu, Jin Kun, Dai Hong and Cheng Zhidao, was completed in 1736, the first year of the Qianlong Emperor’s reign. Known as the "Qing court version," the handscroll is quite rich, following the styles and contents of previous versions. With its bright coloring and mature brushwork, the ruled-line representation of the architecture and the rendering of the figures are fine and exact, and it is an invaluable source of study for both later Ming and Qing society and customs. 

Exhibit

The title of this special exhibition comes from the Chinese term "wei haowu," which can be translated as "spurious finery" and derives originally from the great Northern Song artist and collector Mi Fu (1052-1107) in his critique of a calligraphic work entitled "Classic of the Yellow Court" attributed to Zhong You (151-230). At the time, Mi believed that, even though the work was a tracing copy from the Tang dynasty (618-907), the imitation was of such exceptional quality as to merit the use of "spurious finery" to describe and affirm its high artistic value.

With this in mind, the exhibition here uses "fineries of forgery" to discuss fake but fine works of painting and calligraphy produced in the sixteenth to eighteenth century and related to Suzhou styles as well as their influence. These forgeries that had been provided with the names of famous masters from the Tang, Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties are, regardless of quality, traditionally lumped together under the label of "Suzhou pian," or "Suzhou fakes." Thus relegated to the category of forgeries, many of these works now in public and private collections have been subsequently neglected for quite some time.

Nevertheless, the large numbers of and wide range of subjects in "Suzhou fakes" serve as apt reminders of the "craze for antiquities" that spread in the late Ming and early Qing period along with the rise of painting and calligraphy as consumer items. The "fineries of forgery" from the late Ming and early Qing in the collection of the National Palace Museum demonstrate how commercial workshops at the time proceeded to reproduce works in the name of ancient masters and to employ the styles of such renowned Suzhou artists as Wen Zhengming (1470-1559), Tang Yin (1470-1524), and Qiu Ying (ca. 1494-1552) to meet the demands of consumers for this fashion. As such, these works fed into the vivid imagination of a public seeking famous literary allusions and popular auspicious themes in art, resulting in numerous “hot” products, such as “Up the River on Qingming” and "Shanglin Park," appearing on the market.

"Suzhou fakes," though originally made in commercial workshops, had the advantages of mass production and wide circulation, features that should not be overlooked. As a result, they actually are a vital medium for studying the dissemination of information, imagining of antiquity, and construction of knowledge starting from the middle Ming dynasty. “Suzhou fakes” even later managed to successfully enter the imperial collection of the following Qing dynasty. Having a direct impact on the formation of the Qing court academic style, these "fineries of forgery" came to play an important role in the development of later Chinese painting that has previously gone mostly unnoticed. 

Exhibit

The title of this special exhibition comes from the Chinese term "wei haowu," which can be translated as "spurious finery" and derives originally from the great Northern Song artist and collector Mi Fu (1052-1107) in his critique of a calligraphic work entitled "Classic of the Yellow Court" attributed to Zhong You (151-230). At the time, Mi believed that, even though the work was a tracing copy from the Tang dynasty (618-907), the imitation was of such exceptional quality as to merit the use of "spurious finery" to describe and affirm its high artistic value.

With this in mind, the exhibition here uses "fineries of forgery" to discuss fake but fine works of painting and calligraphy produced in the sixteenth to eighteenth century and related to Suzhou styles as well as their influence. These forgeries that had been provided with the names of famous masters from the Tang, Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties are, regardless of quality, traditionally lumped together under the label of "Suzhou pian," or "Suzhou fakes." Thus relegated to the category of forgeries, many of these works now in public and private collections have been subsequently neglected for quite some time.

Nevertheless, the large numbers of and wide range of subjects in "Suzhou fakes" serve as apt reminders of the "craze for antiquities" that spread in the late Ming and early Qing period along with the rise of painting and calligraphy as consumer items. The "fineries of forgery" from the late Ming and early Qing in the collection of the National Palace Museum demonstrate how commercial workshops at the time proceeded to reproduce works in the name of ancient masters and to employ the styles of such renowned Suzhou artists as Wen Zhengming (1470-1559), Tang Yin (1470-1524), and Qiu Ying (ca. 1494-1552) to meet the demands of consumers for this fashion. As such, these works fed into the vivid imagination of a public seeking famous literary allusions and popular auspicious themes in art, resulting in numerous “hot” products, such as “Up the River on Qingming” and "Shanglin Park," appearing on the market.

"Suzhou fakes," though originally made in commercial workshops, had the advantages of mass production and wide circulation, features that should not be overlooked. As a result, they actually are a vital medium for studying the dissemination of information, imagining of antiquity, and construction of knowledge starting from the middle Ming dynasty. “Suzhou fakes” even later managed to successfully enter the imperial collection of the following Qing dynasty. Having a direct impact on the formation of the Qing court academic style, these "fineries of forgery" came to play an important role in the development of later Chinese painting that has previously gone mostly unnoticed. 

Exhibit

 The title of this special exhibition comes from the Chinese term "wei haowu," which can be translated as "spurious finery" and derives originally from the great Northern Song artist and collector Mi Fu (1052-1107) in his critique of a calligraphic work entitled "Classic of the Yellow Court" attributed to Zhong You (151-230). At the time, Mi believed that, even though the work was a tracing copy from the Tang dynasty (618-907), the imitation was of such exceptional quality as to merit the use of "spurious finery" to describe and affirm its high artistic value.

With this in mind, the exhibition here uses "fineries of forgery" to discuss fake but fine works of painting and calligraphy produced in the sixteenth to eighteenth century and related to Suzhou styles as well as their influence. These forgeries that had been provided with the names of famous masters from the Tang, Song, Yuan, and Ming dynasties are, regardless of quality, traditionally lumped together under the label of "Suzhou pian," or "Suzhou fakes." Thus relegated to the category of forgeries, many of these works now in public and private collections have been subsequently neglected for quite some time.

Nevertheless, the large numbers of and wide range of subjects in "Suzhou fakes" serve as apt reminders of the "craze for antiquities" that spread in the late Ming and early Qing period along with the rise of painting and calligraphy as consumer items. The "fineries of forgery" from the late Ming and early Qing in the collection of the National Palace Museum demonstrate how commercial workshops at the time proceeded to reproduce works in the name of ancient masters and to employ the styles of such renowned Suzhou artists as Wen Zhengming (1470-1559), Tang Yin (1470-1524), and Qiu Ying (ca. 1494-1552) to meet the demands of consumers for this fashion. As such, these works fed into the vivid imagination of a public seeking famous literary allusions and popular auspicious themes in art, resulting in numerous “hot” products, such as “Up the River on Qingming” and "Shanglin Park," appearing on the market.

"Suzhou fakes," though originally made in commercial workshops, had the advantages of mass production and wide circulation, features that should not be overlooked. As a result, they actually are a vital medium for studying the dissemination of information, imagining of antiquity, and construction of knowledge starting from the middle Ming dynasty. “Suzhou fakes” even later managed to successfully enter the imperial collection of the following Qing dynasty. Having a direct impact on the formation of the Qing court academic style, these "fineries of forgery" came to play an important role in the development of later Chinese painting that has previously gone mostly unnoticed.

Exhibit

To meet the need for recording information and ideas, unique forms of calligraphy (the art of writing) have been part of the Chinese cultural tradition through the ages. Naturally finding applications in daily life, calligraphy still serves as a continuous link between the past and the present. The development of calligraphy, long a subject of interest in Chinese culture, is the theme of this exhibit, which presents to the public selections from the National Palace Museum collection arranged in chronological order for a general overview. 

Exhibit

Members of the literati during the Song dynasty favored refinement. They often wrote poems, sang, or presented flowers as demonstrations of affection to one another.

The film employs live film and multimedia to depict the work’s contextual meaning, leading audiences to understand the flower exchange custom practiced by the literati and guiding them into the calligraphist’s spirit. 

Exhibit

The National Palace Museum houses a collection of over 214,500 rare and antiquarian books, and its core is made up of print editions, volumes executed in movable type, imprints annotated by renowned scholars, old manuscripts, and delicately copied volumes, spanning the Song, Yuan, Ming, and Qing dynasties. There are also some imprints and manuscripts originating from historical Korea and Japan. While the collection may not be large in quantity, it is of quite impressive quality. Apart from giving an opportunity to better understand how academic studies and scholarship, as well as printing and binding, evolved in China over the centuries, it also serves as point of reference for authenticating later editions. The collection is therefore highly significant for the preservation of ancient literature and bibliographic research.

When the Manchus came to rule over China, the new dynasty also took over the entire court library left by the defeated Ming and expanded the collections. Compilations of imperial writings and various other works were commissioned by imperial order, and great effort was put into actively acquiring books, which were for the emperor’s eyes only. Other sources in the National Palace Museum’s rich collection of rare and antiquarian books include Ming imprints and maps taken over from the former National Library of Peiping and rare Chinese originals and Japanese imprints assembled in Japan by Yang Shoujing who served as an attaché to the envoys to Japan in the late Qing dynasty, as well as Song and Yuan editions, local gazetteers, and various Qing literary anthologies bequeathed by donors from all walks of life. Together, they constitute a valuable complement to the Museum’s collection of imperial libraries, and those produced by private or commercial operations, in particular, are characterized by their ingenious variety and simple dignity.