Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan Kwok-ki speaks at "Thousands of Years at a Glance: Exploring Ancient Chinese Civilization - visit to Hong Kong Palace Museum" on Dec 5, 2023. (PHOTO / HKSAR GOVERNMENT)
A high-level delegation visiting the Hong Kong Palace Museum on Tuesday expressed its deep admiration for Chinese culture and praised the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s efforts in preserving such rich cultural heritage.
The delegation, consisting of about 90 Hong Kong-based global leaders, including diplomats, heads of chambers of commerce, and representatives of multinational corporations and media outlets, embarked on a tour of Hong Kong’s latest cultural landmark.
The visit, organized by the Commissioner’s Office of China’s Foreign Ministry in the HKSAR, aims to showcase Chinese cultural heritage and highlight the city’s position as a hub for cultural exchange between China and the rest of the world.
One of the highlights of the visit was the special exhibition, Gazing at Sanxingdui: New Archaeological Discoveries in Sichuan, which opened to the public in September and features 120 precious objects made of bronze, jade, gold, and ceramics, dating back to between 2,600 and 4,500 years ago, which were unearthed at the Sanxingdui archaeological site in Southwest China’s Sichuan province.
Delegates also had the opportunity to learn more about the Forbidden City, an imperial palace complex of the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368-1911) in Beijing, through the museum’s two permanent exhibitions.
In his welcoming remarks to the delegation, Hong Kong Chief Secretary for Administration Eric Chan Kwok-ki emphasized the HKSAR government’s commitment to developing the city into an international cultural exchange center between the East and the West.
“We are stepping up efforts to promote Chinese culture. Next year, we will establish the Chinese culture promotion office and organize for the first time the Chinese culture festival,” Chan said.
Li Yongsheng, acting commissioner of the commissioner’s office, said that museums are the best platforms to explore human civilizations and that the Hong Kong Palace Museum embodies the continuity, peaceful nature, inclusiveness and unity of the Chinese civilization.
“China always values and pursues cultural communication with others,” he said, citing exhibits of foreign treasures found at ancient sites in China, such as ivory artifacts and seashells from the Sanxingdui site. He also said that the incorporation of Western crafts and techniques into Chinese architecture and artworks “highlighted the openness and inclusiveness of the Chinese culture”.
Inaki Amate, chairman of the European Chamber of Commerce in Hong Kong, said it was fascinating to see all the artifacts during his first visit to the museum.
“I think it’s a wonderful exhibition because it opens our eyes to the rest of the world, allowing us to know so much that we didn’t know about China,” said Amate, adding that he looks forward to visiting the San-xingdui site in Sichuan province.
Luis Fernando Orozco Barrera, consul general of Colombia in Hong Kong, hailed the museum as a testimony to the city’s efforts to strengthen its role as a bridge between China and the rest of the world.
“I believe that Hong Kong is doing an outstanding job in preserving and blending the old and the new,” he said.
Ali Saad Al-Hajri, consul general of the State of Qatar in Hong Kong, said he was amazed by the Sanxingdui exhibition, which raises unanswered questions and demonstrates the sophisticated craftsmanship involved in creating the relics.
The diplomat revealed that he has visited the museum “probably 10 times”, adding: “I think the Hong Kong Palace Museum is adopting a new way of telling the stories of a civilization and is doing it very successfully. I have come to the museum many times and every time I come I find something new, which keeps people continuing to come.”
