The relationship between the present National Palace Museum in Taipei and the Peking Palace Museum founded in 1925 is well known, and the similarity of their respective names is enough to demonstrate the closeness of their origin.  However, in terms of its collection, the Museum has another important predecessor in the Central Museum, an institution whose relationship with the museum is less well known.  The Central Museum was in fact the source of more of the bronzes and enamelware in the present collection than the Palace Museum.  Many of the Museum's ceramics, jades, and embroidery also hail from the Central Museum.   Accordingly, during the sixteen years between the movement of the collection to Taiwan in 1949 and the completion of the present facilities in Shih-lin in 1965, the formal name of the Museum was the National Central Museum Library Joint Administrative Office.  The office jointly administered the former tasks of the Palace Museum, Central Museum, and Central Library.  According to the "Organizational Regulations" established in 1965, the Museum was responsible for the organization, preservation, and exhibition of the collections from both the Palace Museum and the Central Museum.  This basic principle is maintained in the current "Organization Guidelines" of the National Palace Museum.

In 1933 the Preparatory Office for the Central Museum was established in Nanking, under the leadership of Fu Ssu-nien, Director of the Institute of History and Philology at the Academia Sinica.  More than a year later, directorship of the office was assumed by Li Chi, the Head of the Institute of History and Philology's Archeology Department.  In 1936 the Preparatory Office established the Administrative Council.  The Director of the Academia Sinica, Tsai Yuan-pei, served as head of the council, and Fu Ssu-nien acted as secretary.  It is clear that, in terms of organizational development and personnel arrangement, the Central Museum was, from its inception, closely associated with the Academia Sinica, and that the organizational procedures of these two institutions developed in tandem.  During the War of Resistance against the Japanese, the Central Museum was moved along with the Academia Sinica and the Institute of History and Philology to Li-chuang in Szechwan Province.  After the war, the institutions were jointly returned to Nanking.  In 1948, as the war between the Nationalist armies and Communist troops grew closer to the capital, Fu Ssu-nien and Li Chi also acted as the principle planners for the movement of the Palace Museum collection to Taiwan.  The joint movement of Academia Sinica (specifically the Institute of History and Philology), Central Museum, and Palace Museum was then supervised with the help of Mr. Fu and others.  This was the origin of the office for the joint administration of the Palace and Central Museum antiquities.

The primary point for discussing the tradition of the Central Museum is to review the founding objectives, scope,and work of that institution as a source of reference for the present operation of the National Palace Museum.  The original objectives of the Central Museum were the promotion of scientific research and improvement of popular education.  For this purpose, the Museum was divided into three research and education institutes, which were respectively responsible for the fields of natural science, humanities, and modern technology.  Although the Central Museum did engage in the purchase of antiquities, the focus of its attention was on archeological excavation (ie. the Peng-shan Cliff Tombs), ethnic studies (ie. observation of the minorities of Szechwan and Hsi-kang (eastern Tibet) province, investigation of the classics of Mo-so people), and the study of traditional crafts (ie. survey and collection of Szechwan handicrafts).  In terms of academic attitude and investigative spirit, these studies, like those of the Academia Sinica, stood at the forefront of both contemporary Chinese and international scholarship.  This is a tradition that should not be neglected by the staff of the National Palace Museum.

For a time, the Museum drifted too close to the antiquities world, making it difficult for the staff to maintain a clear view of the institution's objectives and role in society.  I've taken this opportunity to remind us of the traditions that the Museum inherited from Central Museum, and I hope that the staff here will take this serious topic under careful consideration.  Once we have clarified the traditions that we must protect and maintain, our mission and responsibilities will become more apparent, and the National Palace Museum man present its proper face to society.
--- by Tu Cheng-sheng

Conference on Theme of Poetry and Literature in Chinese Art
2001/05/18 (Tuesday)
Lecture Hall, Main Administration Building
Contact:
Tel. 02-28812021
Fax. 02-28821440
e-mail: karl@npm.gov.tw

An International Symposium on Archives of the Ching Dynasty and Research on the History of Taiwan
200106/15 - 2001/06/16 (Friday - Saturday)
Lecture Hall, Main Administration Building

Lecture and Discussion Series
04/02/2001 (Monday) 10:00 - 12:00
04/16/2001 (Monday) 10:00 - 12:00
05/14/2001 (Monday) 10:00 - 12:00
05/21/2001 (Monday) 10:00 - 12:00
05/28/2001 (Monday) 10:00 - 12:00
06/11/2002 (Monday) 10:00 - 12:00

Educational Activities
Movie Presentation
The Beauty of Famous Paintings in the National Palace Museum
Location: Multi-media theater adjacent to Gallery 210
Time: Chinese 9:30, 11:00, 12:30, 14:00, 15:30
           English 10:00, 11:30, 13:00, 14:30, 16:00
           Japanese 10:30, 12:00, 13:30, 15:00
Contents: This twenty-minute film offers an introduction to the beauty of traditional Chinese painting through a special selection of twenty-two representative paintings from the Museum collection.  Topics include structure, ink, color, inscriptions, and seals.

Painting and Calligraphy Multi-media Exhibit
Location: Multi-media exhibition are adjacent to Gallery 210
Facilities: Six computer banks available for individual use
Contents: Masterpieces of Chinese Painting Children's Program