The Context

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The Great Relic Relocation: An Historic Migration Sep 29, 2022

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In 1931, following the September 18th Incident in China, the Japanese occupied three provinces in Northeast China, including Liaoning, Jilin and Heilongjiang. It wasn’t long afterward that they turned their attention to Beijing, with an eye firmly set on the large collection of priceless cultural artifacts housed at the Palace Museum, located in heart of the city. Having failed an earlier attempt at looting the cultural relics back in 1894, during the first Sino-Japanese War, they came better prepared this time. The future of China’s most prominent museum and its vast collection was balanced on a knife edge.
Today, we are going to take you back almost a century ago and offer you a glimpse at the largest-scale migration of cultural relics from China’s most prominent museum, the Palace Museum, formally the imperial residence at the Forbidden City.

Origins Project: All Points of Origin Sep 26, 2022

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Today we’ll have the second installment of our two-part feature where we discuss a nationwide archaeological project that challenges previous notions of Chinese civilization through scientific evidence to better understand all those ancient ruins left behind.

Origins Project: Truth from Legend Sep 22, 2022

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The “Origins Project" is a decades-long, multi-disciplinary research endeavor that aims to trace the development of Chinese civilization. The project involves some 400 scholars from across China and nearly 70 scientific research institutes, universities and local archaeological institutions. The project gives Chinese researchers opportunities to explore alternative approaches not only to decode China’s prehistory, but also to redefine the concept of civilization itself.
In the first installment of what will be a two-part feature, we’re going to talk about the development of Chinese civilizaion and how myths and legends shape its narrative.

Tang Monk Jianzhen: Journey to the East Sep 19, 2022

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When the first round of the Covid-19 pandemic broke out in Wuhan of central China’s Hubei Province in early 2020, many countries recognized its inherent risk to global health and began donating gloves, masks, hazmat suits – sending whatever they could to help combat the virus. Among the supplies sent from Japan were shipments from the organization that administers the HSK, otherwise known as the Chinese proficiency test, there in Japan.

What they didn’t expect was that the Chinese phrase written on the exterior of those relief boxes would go viral on Chinese social media. The lines read, “Even though we live in different places, we live under the same sky.” Netizens praised the words as a sign of heartfelt support for China in its struggle to cope with the coronavirus.
Today, we’re going to talk about how this very short poem went a long way toward inspiring a Buddhist monk of the Tang Dynasty to undertake a perilous journey to re-establish the correct precepts and practices of Buddhism in Japan.

Tianqi Explosion: The Mystery of Beijing’s Big Bang Sep 16, 2022

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Equivalent to an atomic bomb in terms of its destructive power, the Tianqi Explosion is considered one of three major mysteries in recorded history yet to be solved. If you’re into solving puzzles, the others two are a 3,600-year-old event called Mound of the Dead that occurred in ancient India and Russia’s Tunguska Event that occurred in 1908.
Today, we’re going to tell some stories concerning a cataclysmic explosion that turned much of Beijing to rubble nearly 400 years ago. Historians estimate that over 20,000 people were killed or injured, but the mystery of what happened has yet to be solved.

Mazu: Chinese Goddess of the Sea Sep 13, 2022

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The tempestuous nature of the sea is a thing of legend – not only legend, but of gods. Just mention God of the Sea to a westerner, and you’ll conjure up images of Poseidon, reputed to be one of the most bad-tempered, moody and greedy of the Olympian gods. By contrast, the Chinese Goddess of the Sea is Mazu, a kind and compassionate lady watching over sailors, fishermen, and travelers.
Today, we’re going to introduce Mazu, the most influential goddess of the sea in China, who is at the heart of a host of beliefs and customs throughout the country’s coastal areas as well as countless Chinese communities around the world.

Chalice of Eternal Stability: Rise and Fall of an Empire Sep 08, 2022

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At the recently held cultural relic exhibition entitled “The Making of Zhongguo – Origins, Developments and Achievements of Chinese Civilization” at China’s Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, many of the exhibits were taken from the collection of the museum itself, and a significant proportion of those were related to Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty, which lasted from 1644 to 1911. The exhibition featured antiques collected by the emperor, including some items he himself used regularly. There were also several items that were custom-made especially for him throughout his reign, which lasted from 1735 to 1796.
Today, we’re going to talk about the Chalice of Eternal Stability designed by China’s longest reigning emperor, and its connection to the fortune of the country’s last dynasty.

Houmuwu Ding: A Great Reputation Sep 05, 2022

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Earlier this year, residents in Beijing noticed a subtle shift taking place in the subway – on signs, the English word “station” has been replaced with “Zhan”, the Chinese pinyin. In some cases, English station names such as Olympic Park and Terminal 2 of the Capital International Airport have become “Aolinpike Gongyuan” and “Er Hao Hangzhanlou”, and thank goodness their English translations are still listed in brackets.

This “pinyinization” campaign has caused a stir online, with many netizens questioning the rationale behind such substitutions, since foreign visitors who don’t speak Chinese are unlikely to understand anything written in pinyin. Some joked that if the intention is to boost Chinese cultural confidence, we shouldn’t use pinyin but rather the most ancient written language which is seen on oracle bones.

A similar discussion occurred when the National Museum of China was renovated and reopened in 2011. Visitors to the museum found that one of its major highlights, which is the heaviest piece of bronzeware to survive from anywhere in the ancient world, had been renamed from Simuwu Ding to Houmuwu Ding.
Today, we’re going to tell some stories concerning the world’s most massive ancient bronze object and the controversy around the name of this magnificent artifact that shows off the supreme bronze craftsmanship of more than 3,000 years ago.

Bronze Water Basin: Awash with Love Aug 31, 2022

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“I want to give my love an unforgettable gift. The question is what?”

This is a challenge many guys face but few get right. Perhaps they can draw some inspiration from a young official that lived some 27 hundred years ago. He came up with a stunning piece of art that not only was likely a hit with his lady, but also the world for generations to come.

Instead of the gold or silver one would expect, his gift was a cast bronze wash basin.
Today, we are going to talk about an ancient bronze washing basin that showed one man’s true devotion to his beloved by combining both art and technology.

Ancient Trade Root: How the Sweet Potato got to China Aug 28, 2022

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Imagine for a moment what life might be like if 16th-century sailors and explorers hadn’t introduced potatoes to Europe. How different would your dinner look? More importantly, would your ancestors have survived?

The discovery of the potato and its introduction to the continent’s colonial powerhouses by the likes of Sir Walter Raleigh or Christopher Columbus – depending on what history books you read – was pivotal. Potatoes provided a stable, easily cultivated food source that prevented famine and improved nutrition among the poorest in society.

Coincidentally, at around the same time, on a different side of the world, a very similar story was unfolding, but instead of the humble tuber we know in the West, it was the introduction to China of the more exotic sweet potato. In China, it goes by different names depending on what region you’re in. The most commonly used monikers are hongshu (red potato) and ganshu (sweet potato).
Today, we’re going to talk about how sweet potatoes made their way to China, and how, as a relatively recent import to this ancient civilization, they became a staple food among the common folk.

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