Exhibition on Rare Ancient Chinese Artifacts Kicks off in Taipei

Taipei, Oct. 8 (CNA) Taiwan’s National Palace Museum and several Chinese museums opened an exhibition in Taipei on Monday that is showcasing rare artifacts from ancient China that shed light on Chinese rites from 3,000 years ago, organizers said Monday.

Bronze vessels with long engravings, jade artifacts, oracle bones, gold ornaments, glassware, pottery and porcelain from the Western Zhou Dynasty (1046-771 B.C.) will all be displayed at the National Palace Museum until Jan. 7.

Fung Ming-chu, director of the museum, said translations of the artifacts’ engravings aim to give visitors insight into the ritual and musical lives of people during that period.

Among the 176 exhibited items, 54 are grade-one cultural relics from China, presenting a rare opportunity for visitors to see precious and large collections of artifacts from China in Taiwan, Fung said.

China’s national treasure "He zun," a ritual bronze vessel of the zun shape, famous for having the inscription "Middle Kingdom," or "China," written on it, and "Qiang pan," an inscribed bronze basin dating back to ancient times, are among the items on display. Both artifacts were listed as cultural relics prohibited from leaving China, but exceptions were made to stage the exhibition in Taiwan.

The exhibition, titled "The Cultural Grandeur of the Western Zhou Dynasty," is a collaboration between the National Palace Museum, museums in China’s Shaanxi Province, and the Shaanxi Institute of Archaeology. (By Christie Chen)