The Forbidden City Research Center founded in Zhejiang University
May 09, 2011|admin |
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On the morning of May 9th, the Forbidden City Research Center was officially founded in Zhejiang University. It is the first institution of domestic universities named after the forbidden city science, since 鈥渢he Forbidden City Science鈥 was put forward as an academic concept. Zhejiang University will recruit graduate students to study the Forbidden City from 2012.On the ceremony, XinmiaoZheng , who is president of the National Palace Museum, WenruLi, who is vice president of the National Palace Museum other four senior experts were appointed Adjunct Professors of Zhejiang University.
XinmiaoZheng and XiZhang, Chairman of the Development Committee of Zhejiang University, would work as honorary director of Zhejiang University National Palace Museum Research Center. WeidongLuo, vice president of Zhejiang University, opened the research centre with them. HuiYu, head of Scientific Research Department of National Palace Museum and CaojinYan, executive vice president of Zhejiang University Institute of cultural heritage would work as director of the research center. XianlunBao ,Deputy Director of Zhejiang Province Department of Culture, and WenFang, Honorary Professor Princeton University and Adjunct Professor of Zhejiang University, gave speeches on the ceremony.
XinmiaoZheng who is president of the National Palace Museum said, the Forbidden City was the royal collection and the people and things happened here, and was composed of these cultural areas. The Forbidden City which is preserved completely, is the world's largest existing ancient palace complex and the most typical ancient Chinese architecture 鈥漨useum鈥. The Forbidden City exists as a cultural heritage, covering almost all categories of cultural heritage from the immovable to the movable and from the intangible to non-material. Possession of movable heritage is not only unparalleled in quantity, but also with high precision and advanced system. National Palace Museum and its collections, are the physical states, living state historical sites and exhibits. They are unique in many ways and irreplaceable.
WenruLi who is vice president of the National Palace Museum thought that to study the Forbidden City is to study Chinese history, and to study Chinese history and traditional culture also could not get rid of the museum's research. The National Palace Museum is one of the world's largest museums with the most visitors, most exhibitions exited and has the biggest influence. Scientific research is more and more important and we should take good use of the history role of the Forbidden City鈥檚 cultural heritage.
On October 2003, XinmiaoZheng, who is president of the National Palace Museum, put forward to make 鈥渢he Forbidden City Science鈥 as a discipline on the curators鈥 forum celebrating the 70th anniversary of the Nanjing Museum. In early 2009, XinmiaoZheng integrated his twenty articles exploring the value of the Forbidden City and 鈥渢he Forbidden City Science鈥 into the book 鈥渢he Forbidden City and the Forbidden City Science鈥 which were published by the Forbidden City press.
The study of the Forbidden City science related to history, politics, architecture, artifacts, literature, art, religion, folklore, science and technology and many other disciplines. The practices and research results of the Forbidden City which have been accumulated for over 80 years, lay good foundations for the Forbidden City Science research. The establishment of the Forbidden City Science will turn the research into the conscious stage, and raise the overall level of the study of the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City Science reflects National Palace Museum鈥檚 strong sense of responsibility, sense of mission and self-consciousness to promote Chinese traditional civilization. It advocates the concept of 鈥渢he Forbidden City Science in China, the Forbidden City Science in the World鈥 which provides theoretical guidance for protection of the National Palace Museum and construction of museums.
The National Palace Museum was born with excellent academic tradition. It had a closely relationship with Peking University, the academic research center of China, since it was established. And the main builders were well-known scholars from the school. In recent years, Zhejiang University have also carried out extensive cooperation and exchanges with National Palace Museum of both Beijing and Taiwan, and a mechanism for mutual trust has been established. In early 2010, Beijing Palace Museum and Zhejiang University signed a strategic cooperation framework agreement. Under the agreement, both sides will regard 鈥渢he Forbidden City Science鈥 as an opportunity to expand cooperation, promote 鈥渢he Forbidden City Science鈥 research in the University's disciplines, and train graduate students together.
According to HouMingHuang, vice president of the college of Humanities and art history professor of Zhejiang University, Zhejiang University National Palace Museum Research Center will open its door to the graduates who learn the Forbidden City Science next year. 鈥淲e should give students an opportunity to get in touch with the physical collections directly in a different way from traditional academic research.鈥 said professor Huang. Research will include ancient paintings, archaeological conservators and technology, arts archeology, the Forbidden City documents, the history of Ming and Qing Dynasties, the history of Imperial Palace and so on.
Graduate Research Center will implement 鈥漝ual tutors鈥 training that each graduate student has a teacher from the school and a teacher from the National Palace Museum. They will stay in the Palace Museum for a certain time each year to do the research.
Professor XinmiaoZheng has done research on the research model in his book 鈥渢he Forbidden City and the Forbidden City Science鈥. Mr. CongwenShen was a researcher outside the palace many years ago. His work involved in the Forbidden City jade craft, ceramics and lacquer ware. He participated in several projects of the academic Committee in National Palace Museum, and also served as an expert outside the palace on the modern arts and crafts and Conservation Commission.
There was a desk specially for this scholar in Embroidery office of the Palace Museum. Mr. Shen鈥檚 research results on apparel embroidery which were recognized by the world was done there. Mr. Shen started from the embroidery of clothing, wrote a number of papers with great academic value. On base of the results , he went on a further study on using the results of research with clothing to solve artifacts dating problems, and achieved great influence. His academic activities at the National Palace Museum have become important cultural records of celebrity academic activities after founding of the nation.
HaoSun, scholar of Development Institute (China 鈥 Shenzhen), analyzed the enlightenment of this kind of research model to cultural studies in his paper 鈥淥n the outside the National Palace Museum Studies鈥. He believes that the National Palace Museum's resources, especially a large number of antiquities which are inside the museum, are difficult for researchers to reach and commence the study of these objects. 1.5 million pieces of cultural relics have their own unique value, and the academic resources they contain are difficult to estimate. The reason why Mr. Shen could achieve unprecedented research results on costume is his long-term stay in the museum.