Breaking up is hard to do
In anticipation of the holiday crowds, the Forbidden City put in place a series of measures, including starting ticket sales an hour earlier than usual, increasing the total number of ticket outlets to 34, opening special ticket examining lanes for online ticket buyers, and increasing the number of temporary public restrooms.
But it now seems that all these measures were far from enough. In mid-September, during a meeting of the Beijing CPPCC Standing Committee, it was proposed by some members that the government should consider moving the antiques in the Forbidden City into a new museum, thus resolving the dilemma of how to protect the Forbidden City and offer enough room for visitors to appreciate its over 1.8 million antiques.
However, the proposal instantly sparked great controversy when it became public. "I think the proposal was very naive," said Yang Jingrong, a researcher at the Forbidden City. "The buildings and the antiques inside them are like the structure of a human body. The parts are integral to each other," he told the Global Times.
Yang says other former palaces that have been turned into museums in other countries did not separate the collections from their architectural home. As examples, he cited Topkapi Palace in Turkey, Kensington Palace in Britain and the Louvre Museum in France.
Let's stay together
In response to the proposal, the Forbidden City issued an official statement saying that the 1.06 million square-meter palace grounds and the collection are naturally inseparable.
"It (the separation) would undermine the authenticity and integrity of the Forbidden City and finally lead to its demise," the statement said.
"The huge collection and its limited capacity are a big problem for the Forbidden City," said Yang Zhigang, president of the Department of Cultural Heritage and Museology at Fudan University. "Although some of the antiques are best when paired with the architecture to highlight their historic and cultural significance, many other antiques were purchased after the museum was founded, and could be moved," Yang told the Global Times.
"The collection at the Forbidden City comprises 42 percent of the country's total, and the problem is already very obvious, even at times outside the holiday rush," he said, giving the example of last year's notorious theft at the Forbidden City.
On May 8, 2011, farmer Shi Baikui knocked a hole in the Forbidden City's wall and stole nine pieces from a collection on loan from Hong Kong's Liangyicang Museum. He was caught days later, but the incident raised questions about security at the Forbidden City.
"It's worth considering whether to build a new museum to host collections without close ties to the Forbidden City," said Yang Zhigang. "Many antiques have no place to be exhibited."
His views are shared by Professor Song Xiangguang from Peking University.
"Many antiques there are not getting the attention they deserve," Song told the Guangzhou Daily on October 1, noting that tourists mainly focus on the architecture of the Forbidden City instead of its collections.
"Take for example, the famous Jadeite Cabbage at the Taipei's National Palace Museum. We also have it at Beijing's Forbidden City, but it is hardly noticed by tourists," Song said.
Though officials diverge on whether a new museum should be built, they agree on one thing. The area of the Forbidden City grounds open to the public will be expanded.
"The area open to the public will be expanded to 76 percent (from the current 45 percent) in a few years," said Shan.
"The key to resolving the dilemma the Forbidden City is facing now is on one hand to protect its integrity, and meanwhile expand the exhibition area with it," said Shan.
Source: Global Times
Print
Save