The National Palace Museum, established in 1925, has several times accepted invitations to send works of art overseas. The earliest was a show of 735 works in London in 1935. It was followed by an exhibition in Moscow in 1940, and a 1961 show that went to five American cities: Washington, New York, Boston, Chicago and San Francisco. Although the first two exhibitions coincided with World War II or the build-up to it and the ROC was at conflict with Japan, the government still sent art abroad in the hope that Westerners would gain a greater understanding about how China protected its historical legacy. The exhibitions accomplished what they intended. Some of the many youngsters who attended those shows were so deeply moved by the beauty of the treasures from China that they resolved to pursue a career researching Chinese art. A professor of Chinese culture at Brown University wrote a letter to the Wall Street Journal published on December 15 recalling how he had resolved to study Chinese culture and history after seeing the 1961 exhibition, though he was only 12 at the time. Scholars influenced by these foreign exhibits have helped to bring about the boom in Chinese studies in America and Europe during the latter half of this century. It was an entirely unexpected benefit. The coming exhibit in America of works from the museum wasn't rashly planned. In 1991 the ROC was able to overcome diplomatic difficulties of nearly 30 years to send works to Washington for a show at the National Gallery of Art celebrating the 500th anniversary of Columbus' arrival in America. When all went well, the Museum was able to use that loan of works as a model and, when asked by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in June of 1991, began negotiating for the upcoming exhibition. After countless communications and negotiations, the National Palace Museum finally signed an agreement with the Metropolitan in December of 1994. The contract stated that the exhibition was subject to the following provisions:

(1) approval from the Executive Yuan;

(2) mention in The Federal Reporter that the works will not be seized or detained and that the federal government will pay compensation for damages and provide a guarantee that the works will not be subject to any outside interference;

(3) the Metropolitan's assuming responsibility for taking the works from and returning them to the National Palace Museum and for all other aspects of the show (including all arrangements with the other three American museums). This plan was approved by the Executive Yuan on December 28.

The Americans acted even earlier. On September 18, 1995, mention of this show was made in The Federal Reporter (Vol 60, No 180, item 48201), confirming that US law 891259 guaranteed that the exhibited objects could not be subject to government seizure while in the US for the exhibition. It also received guarantees of compensation amounting to US$300 million from the US federal government and the National Foundation for the Arts. The Metropolitan also took out insurance worth US$700 million from Lloyd's of London.

The Met often holds exhibits of borrowed works, and it has abundant experience in this regard. Experienced professionals from both museums will handle all aspects of the packing and protection of the goods and will travel with them.

The Metropolitan is one of the greatest museums in the world, and it has borrowed many works of art that are among the finest of their eras from the museums of other countries. The Mona Lisa from the Louvre, "Treasures of the Hermitage" from the Russian Winter Palace Museum and "Treasures of the Vatican" have all been shown at the Met. And it means a lot to have the National Palace Museum's works exhibited in the art world capital of New York, which is home to many great artists and art connoisseurs.

Furthermore, no two works of art are alike. In selecting works for an exhibit, one does not glibly pick one object from many similar ones. The topic of this exhibit was "Chinese treasures," and it was meant to show the essence of 5000 years of Chinese culture. Naturally works representative of their eras were selected. Four hundred and seventy-five pieces were selected in all. Of the 70 paintings or works of calligraphy selected, 27 were restricted display works (available for restricted showing only, based on consideration of their age and materials). These included paintings that are among the most familiar to Chinese people, such as the Northern Song dynasty Travelers Among Mountains and Streams by Fan Kuan and Early Spring by Guo Xi, and Soughing Wind Among Mountain Pines by Li Tang of the Southern Song. These were included in the 1961 exhibition in America, and because the contrast between these works is representative of the change in Chinese landscapes from the Northern Song to the Southern Song, their absence will make the exhibition incomplete. In order to attain the objective of protecting these works, the establishment of two alternating groups for the four museums (so that each restricted painting is only displayed twice) reduces the number of days the works are exposed. As far as utensils are concerned, the 1961 American exhibit included such important objects as the Maogong Tripod, the San Clan Plate and the Zongchou Bell. These are not being lent this time, and whereas five pieces of Ru Kiln porcelain were shown on the last trip to America, this time only four will go. Only three of the museum's 75 wooden curio stands will make the trip. So it's not as if the museum is loaning away all of its important items.

When museum staff was holding discussions and negotiations with the Metropolitan, various kinds of potential problems were discussed in depth--all bases were covered. Looked at from a broader perspective, this show, besides giving Americans a chance to appreciate the beauty of Chinese culture, can even more let Westerners understand the ROC's painstaking efforts to protect its cultural legacy.

p.123

ROC citizens, deeply concerned about preserving the nation's treasures, protest in the square in front of the National Palace Museum. The museum published in the country's press the raisond'etre for its exhibition tour in America, explaining the whole story behind the incident. (Photo by Vincent Chang)