Lost Treasure Returns Home

Lost Treasure Returns Home

A bronze horse head sculpture， a treasure of Chinas Old Summer Palace that went missing after Anglo-French allied forces looting 160 years ago， finally returned to its original palace home on December 1， 2020.

This is the first time a long lost important cultural relic from the Old Summer Palace， or Yuanmingyuan， has been returned to and housed at its original location after being repatriated from overseas.

Twelve animal head sculptures once formed a zodiac water clock in Beijings Yuanmingyuan， built by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty（1644-1911）. The original artifacts disappeared from the royal garden when the Anglo-French allied forces looted and ransacked the palace in 1860 during the Second Opium War （1856-1860）.

The horse head， designed by the Italian artist Giuseppe Castiglione and crafted by royal craftsmen， is an artistic blend of East and West. Macao billionaire Stanley Ho bought the bronze horse head and decided to donate it to the National Cultural Heritage Administration （NCHA） and return it to its original home.

An exhibition commemorating the return of the horse head has been launched at a temple in Yuanmingyuan， displaying about 100 items including cultural relics and photographs.

“There is an international consensus on returning lost cultural relics to their original homes， and Chinas efforts to bring cultural relics home during recent years have enhanced that consensus，” said He Yan， chair of the Beijing Urban Planning Society.

2021 Shanghai International Musical Festival Is Launched

The 2021 Shanghai International Musical Festival began on December 7， 2020. Competitors of the 2019 Shanghai Musical Singing Competition performed during its opening ceremony.

The festival is held annually and puts on a variety of concerts. This years musical festival includes activities such as the original Chinese musical performance season， the Chinese original musical incubation plan， the International Musical Development Forum， and the 2021 Shanghai Musical Singing Competition.

The Shanghai International Music Festival was founded in 2001 as a way to celebrate music in all of its forms. It was created when the Shanghai International Radio Music Festival and the Shanghai Spring International Music Festival merged.

Chinas Oldest Sculpture Ranks among Worlds Top 10 Archaeological Discoveries

A U.S. magazine has chosen Chinas oldest known sculpture artwork as one of the Top 10 Discoveries of 2020.

Archaeology， a publication of the Archaeological Institute of America， gave the honor to a 13，500-year-old miniature bird sculpture which was unearthed in central Chinas Henan Province.

Last June， an international team of archaeologists from China， Canada， France， Israel， and Norway unveiled their study on the sculpture， suggesting it was the oldest known work of Chinese sculpture art.

The discovery sets back not only the origin of sculpture in East Asia by more than 8，500 years but also the history of the art form of birds found in China by 8，000 years.

The bird statue， which is 19.2 millimeters long， 5.1 millimeters wide， and 12.5 millimeters high， is dark brown on one side and bronze on the other.

Made of a mammalian limb bone， which had been heated and charred before it was carved， the bird figurine has a stout body shape， small head， round beak， and long tail. Instead of carving the birds legs， the unknown ancient artist cut a base for the sculpture to stand on.

Photo Exhibition on Yunnan Province Kicks off in Nepal

A week-long photo exhibition on Chinas Yunnan Province was launched in late November 2020， featuring 32 outstanding photographs that portray the scenery and art in the southwestern province.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic， the exhibition， organized by Nepal China Media Forum in collaboration with other partners， was inaugurated virtually via teleconference from Kathmandu， Nepals capital， and Kunming， the capital city of Yunnan Province.

At the inauguration ceremony on November 20， 2020， Chairman of National Assembly of Nepal Ganesh Prasad Timilsina said that the event provides a platform for the people of Nepal and China to know more about each other and helps strengthen the people-to-people relations between the two countries. Timilsina also added that the organization of the exhibition amid the pandemic is an example of closeness between the two countries.

Nepals Minister for Culture， Tourism， and Civil Aviation Yogesh Bhattarai praised the special relationship between Nepal and Chinas Yunnan Province and highlighted the importance of cultural heritages of both countries.