Prague, Oct 23 (CTK) – The Naprstek Museum in Prague displays exhibits from its Chinese collections to cover more than 1000 years of the history of China (from 220 to 1644 A.D.) at an exhibition entitled “Middle Kingdom” that was opened Friday.
It offers, for instance, a unique statue of the Bodhisattva Buddhist deity, in particular, the Bodhisattva of Great Compassion, which is one of the ten most valuable items at the National Museum, as well as figures from graves, ceramic and china vessels and large scroll paintings.
Many of the 110 exhibits are put on display for the first time.
The exhibition, which runs through September 30, is divided into three thematic lines.
“It is primarily the line of contacts (of China) with both near and distant countries, the line of the society development, the technological development of ceramics and china, and also the line of Buddhism, which is the only one of the spiritual streams in China to be of a foreign origin,” Helena Heroldova, the author of the exhibition, said.
Major exhibits include two scroll paintings, about ten metres long. The scroll entitled Spring in the Han Palace depicts the entertainment in the Court society, while Peace and Quiet on the River captures the life in a wealthy city.
The exhibition is accompanied by a mobile application with further information as well as lectures and workshops.
The Naprstek Museum of Asian, African and American Cultures has been seated in a former wine distillery in the Old Town of Prague since 1886.
It bears the name of Vojtech Naprstek (1826-1894), a Czech philanthropist, patriot and politician as well as a pioneering Czech-language journalist in the United States. In 1874, he opened his museum with mainly ethnographic exhibits. In 1931, the Naprstek Museum became a state property and since WWII it has been part of the National Museum.
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