One day in February, 1961, an American ship took on board at Keelung crate after crate of a strange but precious cargo. Inside these well-packed trunks were part of the best collection of Chinese art in the world—treasures dating back to a time when West Europe was a wilderness and the Western Hemisphere for all practical purposes did not exist.
These precious Chinese objets d'art are off to the United States for a one-year exhibition covering five major cities. Upon completion of the circuit, they will be returned to Taiwan and replaced in the National Palace Museum and the National Central Museum.
The forthcoming Chinese Art Exhibition in the United States reminds the author of the first overseas exhibition of Chinese art treasures in the winter months of 1935-6 in London.
It all began in 1934. The noted authorities on Chinese art in Great Britain, heartened by the success of the exhibitions of German, French, Italian and Belgian art in London, suggested that a Chinese art exhibit on an international scale be held in that city also. They approached the Chinese Government, hoping that China would supply most of the items to be displayed.
The Chinese embassy in London, then under Ambassador Quo Tai-chi, endorsed their suggestion and a formal request was filed with the Chinese Government.
The suggestion, however, was received in China with divided opinions. Some cultural and educational leaders, favoring such an exhibition, pointed out that most European and American people had only a nebulous idea about Chinese art. The exhibition, they said, would enable Occidentals to better understand China and its culture.
Other cultural and educational leaders, on the other hand, were opposed to the idea. Since the treasures had to take a long journey to London, they were worried about the possibility of irrevocable damage to the nation's priceless treasures.
The final decision was left to the Government. After deliberative conferences, the Government concluded that the exhibition would serve as a cultural bridge between China and the Western nations. The best possible protective measures were then taken to guard against any loss· of the precious objets d'art.
In organization, the exhibit was under the joint auspices of the Chinese and British Governments. The two chiefs of state were declared patrons of the exhibition while the two chiefs of government were the honorary chairmen. Honorary board members included noted personalities of both countries and members of the diplomatic corps in London. The Earl of Lytton was chosen as board chairman while China and Great Britain each supplied a vice chairman and half of the members of the board. British members on the board were Sir Percival David, Mr. Oscar Raphael, Mr. G. Eumorfopoules, and Mr. R. L. Hobson. Mr. Paul Pelliot, the noted French sinologue, also served on the board.
The Chinese Government, in making its selections, appointed a committee to select the most representative objects of different periods. The Palace Museum was the principal source; 735 of the 1022 pieces were chosen from its stores. Other treasures were selected from the Ancient Arts Exhibition Hall, the Honan Museum, the Anhwei Library, the Peiping Library and Academia Sinica. A Private collector contributed 65 jade articles.
The organizing committee also tackled the problems of transportation and arrangements for exhibition. Transportation presented the most serious problem for the Government had made it clear that all the treasures must be adequately protected. All of China held its breath, as it were.
The organizing committee then suggested that Great Britain dispatch warships to transport the treasures. Finally, it was decided the H.M.S. Suffolk would take the crates of art to London and the return trip would be made by the S.S. Ranpura of the P. & O. Lines with British warships doing relay convoy duty en route.
To protect the art objects against handling and the elements, cloth sheaths were used to encase the paintings and calligraphy, and small cases with inlaid cotton-pads were to hold the bronzes, jades and other solid objects. The utmost care was exerted in handling.
Dr. Wang Shih-chieh, now minister without portfolio who has overall charge of the coming American exhibition, was chief1y responsible for the selection of the domestic articles for the London exhibit.
The Executive Yuan appointed Dr. Cheng Tien-hsi as special commissioner, the Ministry of Education appointed Mr. Tang Hsi-feng as English secretary and the Palace Museum appointed Mr. Tsuang Shang-yen as Chinese secretary. In addition, four assistants-Messrs. Fu Cheng-lun, Sung Chi-lung, Niu Teh-ming and Na Chih-liang were appointed for custody and exhibition. All the packings were done by the Chinese personnel.
The article shipped to London comprised:
Bronze 108
Porcelain 352
Calligraphy and Painting 175
Jade 127
Archaeological Specimens 113
Rare Books 50
Furniture and Stationery 19
Tapestry and Embroidery 29
Cloisonne Enamel Ware 16
Lacquer Ware 5
Folding Fans 20
Miscellaneous 8
Before the journey, all articles were assigned serial numbers, classified and catalogued. Explanatory notes were compiled, giving in full detail the size, era, description and other information about each. A painting would show, through these notes, its tone, quality, type of coloring, meaning and motif, histories of the inscriptions and scale on the painting and a brief biography of the painter. A porcelain piece would have its kiln, design and specifications carefully explained.
Every article was photographed. The committee, government agencies, participating organs and handling personnel were each equipped with a set of the photographs.
Prior to the journey, a preview was held in Shanghai in April, 1953 at the Bank of China Building on the Bund. Following the London trip, another three-week exhibition was held at Minchi Hall in Nanking. Thousands of spectators crowded the halls every day at both exhibitions.
On June, 1935, the treasures left the Shanghai warehouses of the National Palace Museum on trucks for the wharf where the 9,800-ton cruiser Suffolk was waiting. The next day, the 48-day journey began. The warship reached Portsmouth, England on July 25.
From the military harbor, four trucks transported the cargo to the exhibition hall of the Royal Academy of Art in London. Unpacking was done on September 17.
Many Chinese art objects had come from other countries. All told, 15 countries took part in the international exhibition with a total 3,080 pieces. Actually, more pieces went to London but some of them, including 165 pieces from China, were not displayed for lack of space.
The following chart shows the articles actually put on display:
Austria 4
Belgium 28
Britain and territories 1,579
China 786
Denmark 1
France and C. T. Loo 215
Greece 1
Netherlands 49
Japan 45
Soviet Russia 13
Spain 2
Sweden 113
Switzerland 4
U. S. A. 115
The foreign entries were mostly porcelains, bronzes and jades. The best were those collected from the Chinese provinces of Kansu and Sinkiang by Sir Aurel Stein of Great Britain and Mr. Pelliot of France. Sir Aurel had long before shipped 24 cases of treasures from the Tunhuang Caves to Great Britain. But most of his collections were withheld from the 1953-6 exhibition.
The exhibit was held at Burlington House in London's downtown district of Piccadilly. It was built in 1664 and had been the site for most of London's great exhibitions.
Chinese ramie cloth lined the walls and booths in the exhibition halls. Artificial lights were used. The hall was well heated. Chairs and food were supplied for art lovers who wanted to make it an all-day study. Fire prevention methods were very adequate.
The exhibition began on November 28, 1935 and ended on March 7, 1936. During the 14-week display, 420,048 visitors attended. This number was second only to that of the Italian art exhibition. Some people pointed out that but for the death of King George V during the period, more people would have come. In the last few days, more than 20,000 viewers came daily. It was a record for Burlington House.
Art lovers from Europe and America made special trips to London just for the Chinese exhibition. Newspaper comments were overwhelmingly laudatory. London shops even used Chinese art designs in their show windows. All these aided the success of the international exhibition.
King George V and Queen Mary spent 90 minutes at Burlington House on December 17. Their majesties were deeply impressed. The Crown Prince of Sweden, now King, made several trips to the hall.
Perhaps the only criticism that could be made would be the inadequate arrangement. The selectors had intended to avoid the appearance of a curio shop but they were helpless when so many articles had to be exhibited. Perfection was not easy to obtain, naturally.
On March 9, 1936, the art treasures from China went back into their crates. At mid-night, April 9, they left British shores on board the S.S. Ranpura. The return journey was marked by heavy seas and an accident in which the Ranpura was blown onto a sand beach near Gibraltar. However, not the slightest damage was done to the treasures. The Ranpura reached Shanghai on May 17.
Thus ended the saga of the first overseas trip of China's art treasures.