Ｅｘｈｉｂｉｔｉｏｎ ｏｆ Ｗｅｓｔｅｒｎ Ｃｈｉｎａ Ｐｈｏｔｏｓ ｂｙ Ｃ．Ｇ．Ｍａｎｎｅｒｈｅｉｍ Ｈｅｌｄ ｉｎ Ｘｉ’ａｎ

Ｓｕｎ　Ｋａｎｇ

The Exhibition of Western China Photos by C. G. Mannerheim jointly sponsored by the CPAFFC, the Finland-China Society (FCS) and the Shaanxi Provincial Peoples Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (SPPAFFC) was held in the Xian International University from May 13 to 17. As the third leg of its China tour, the exhibition in Xian, supported by the SPPAFFC and the Xian International University, drew attention from the teachers and students and won acclaim. On the day of its opening about one thousand people visited it.

Carl Gustaf Mannerheim who served as president of Finland from 1944 to 1946 had a Chinese name Ma Dahan. During his journey in Chinas western regions from 1906 to 1908 he explored history, customs and habits of the ethnic groups, collected ancient cultural relics and took about 1,300 photos. All the 60 photos on display at this exhibition were chosen out of the 1,300 which are now preserved in the National Museum of Finland. The well-preserved black-and-white photos with captions showed from multiple perspectives the folk customs and natural scenery of Chinas western regions 100 years ago. Among them there were two photos showing the social life in Xian at the end of the Qing Dynasty. One was Infantry Drill at Xian; the other Prince Yang Zhonglai from Tibet at Xian on His Way to Wutai Mountain. The former one was particularly precious, showing the viewers that the infantry were already equipped with firelocks in the Qing Dynasty. The teachers and students were very much interested in these old photos. The students of the news photography programme carefully reproduced them for their future study and research. Huang Teng, president of the Xian International University, fully affirmed the values of these photos, saying, “The displayed photos with excellent pictures and texts, which vividly and truly reflect the natural scenery and folk customs in western China at the end of the Qing Dynasty, have high historic and cultural values. They not only show us what the old China looked like from a foreigners unique perspective, but also enable us to see and appreciate the tremendous changes of our great motherland over the past century.” The Shaanxi TV Station and other media gave a special coverage of the exhibition.