Europe

Europe’s Largest Display of Chinese Lanterns and Illuminations for Festival of Light at Longleat

“Europe’s Largest Display of Chinese Lanterns and Illuminations for Festival of Light at Longleat”

by Nancy Connolly via “Bath Chronicle“

Finishing touches are being added to a stunning display of illuminated Chinese scenes at the Longleat estate and visitor attraction in Wiltshire.

A total of around 7,000 individual lanterns, miles and miles of silk and thousands of dazzling LED lights are being used to create a series of stunning tableaux for the Festival of Light at the rural estate.

The highlights of the spectacular event include a 70 metre dragon made up of 23,000 lit porcelain cups, bowls and plates, and mythical creatures called ‘qilin’, which are each made from over 65,000 glass phials filled with coloured liquid.

The outdoor extravaganza also features a 20 metre tall Chinese temple, huge traditional Chinese masks, a family of life size pandas in a bamboo forest, giant elephants and other animals including zebras, lions and deer.

In total, 30 tonnes of steel has been used to build the frames for the illuminated structures.

A team of 100 highly skilled craftsmen from the village of Zigong in China’s Sichuan province have spent six months creating the structures, which will remain at Longleat from November 14 until the New Year.

Written records of lantern festivals in China date back 2,000 years, and Zigong is considered to be their spiritual home.

Bob Montgomery, Longleat’s chief executive, said: “The Festival of Light is something truly unique.

“We are taking the age old tradition of the Chinese lantern and completely transforming it for a modern audience using giant LED illuminated structures.

“There will be around 20 different scenes to explore within 30 acres, featuring literally thousands of individual illuminations, created from a mixture of silk, satin and vinyl.

“Nothing like it has been attempted on this scale before in the UK – it’s about as far away from those familiar lightweight flying lanterns as it is possible to get.”

“Russia Seeks to Protect its Arctic Culture Heritage Sites”

Via “RIA Novosti”

MOSCOW, October 28 (RIA Novosti) – The authorities of Russia’s Arkhangelsk Region are set to apply to Russia’s Culture Ministry to include the unique objects of Russia’s Arctic culture heritage into the state culture heritage registry for further state protection, the regional Culture Ministry reported.

The initiative has been discussed at a meeting of the commission on the maritime heritage of Russia’s Marine Board within the framework of “For the Glory of the Fleet and the Fatherland” forum.

“There are many places of unique beauty in the Russian North which are of great architectural, historic and spiritual interest. Among them are lighthouses, polar hydrometeostations and a complex of defense constructions in the Novaya Zemlya archipelago, a Cross on the Franz Josef Land archipelago commemorating the 1913-1914 polar expedition of Russian Arctic explorer Georgy Sedov and Russia’s first stone bastion – the Novodvinskaya fortress,” said the governor of the region, Igor Orlov. (more…)

Art I Love ~ At the Balcony

“At the Balcony” by Pino Daeni

‘Stunning’ Roman Cockerel Goes on Display

Question for my Readers! – Is this just good History Preservation, Our right to Cultural Heritage, or Tomb Robbing? ** DB

“‘Stunning’ Roman Cockerel Goes on Display”

by Victoria Woollaston via “Daily Mail“

Three years since it was discovered during excavations on an ancient cemetery, a rare bronze Roman cockerel has been given a permanent home.

The 2nd century figurine is believed to be one of only nine ever found in the Roman Empire, and is part of a new exhibition at the Corinium Museum in the Cirencester.

Other finds on display include a hoard of almost 1,500 Roman coins, and the perfectly preserved vase it was found in.

This bronze and enamel cockerel was found in a child’s grave in Roman Cirencester in 2011 – and has been painstakingly restored. It is now on display at the Corinium Museum

Archaeologists made the discoveries three years ago while excavating a western cemetery at the former Bridges Garage site on Tetbury Road in Cirencester – or Corinium as it was known when it was the second largest town in Roman Britain.

The bronze and enamel cockerel was said to have been placed in the grave of the two-year-old Roman girl by her parents, and experts believe it was used to ask the Gods to protect her.

They also believe the expensive gift was placed in the grave to ease their daughter’s transition into the ‘next world’.

‘It is the most significant Roman cemetery investigation in the town since the early 1970s,’ said a spokesman for the town’s Corinium Museum.

‘The cockerel found underneath the former Bridge’s Garage site – now St James’s Place – is one of only nine known cockerel figurines from the Roman world, and is the only example with its tail intact.

‘Displayed with the cockerel are an exceptional example of a Roman flagon and a selection of jewellery which include beads and bracelets found in a richly furnished child’s grave.

‘These are high status objects, which give a fascinating insight into the people of Corinium.

Neil Holbrook, Chief Executive of Cotswold Archaeology added: ‘The cockerel is the most spectacular find from more than 60 Roman burials excavated at this site.

‘It was excavated from the grave of young child and was placed close to its head. Interestingly a very similar item was found in Cologne in Germany and it looks like they both could have come from the same workshop based in Britain.’

The Tetbury Hoard, also on display at the museum, contain 1,437 silver and copper-alloy 3rd century Roman coins.

‘The hoard is the museum’s first Roman Coin Hoard and comes from a fascinating period of political upheaval across the Roman Empire,’ continued the museum’s spokesman.

‘It was a time of rapid succession of rulers and usurpers. The coins themselves tell this story.

‘Depictions and inscriptions represent 12 emperors from just a 16 year period.’

The child was buried wearing hobnailed shoes and was accompanied by a pottery feeding vessel and the remarkable enamelled bronze figurine of a cockerel.

The cockerel is 5-inches tall (12.5cm) and the breast, wings, eyes and ‘comb’ are inlaid with enamel, which now appears blue and green.

There is a separately moulded tail plate, also enamelled, with ‘openwork’ decoration. The beak is shown open, in the act of crowing.

“Sino-France Cultural Exchange In Beijing”

Shared in honor of the exhibition recently held in Paris ~ “The Villa of Dr. Jean Bussiere (1872-1960), a French Doctor in Beijing.”**DB

“Sino-France Cultural Exchange In Beijing”

by Vanisa Wei via “iDigest”

From the beginning of 1900s to 1930s, there were a number cultural exchanges between China and France in the northern part of Xishan (the Western Hills), in the Haidian District of northwest Beijing. If the Haidian District Government can take full advantage of the history in that area and make scientific planning to develop the available resources, it will not only improve the local economy but raise the brand awareness of that area.

Important Historical Figures

Andre d’Hormon (1881-1964)

D’Hormon, with another two Chinese educators Cai Yuanpei and Li Shizeng, initiated a work-study program for Chinese students studying in France around 1920. He also persuaded the French Government of the times to establish the Sino-French University and its affiliated institutions in Beijing. These facilities can provide language and other trainings for students prior to going to France. Through this program, a number of important figures in Chinese history, first Premier of the PRC Zhou Enlai and major reformist Deng Xiaoping among them, were fostered. .

At that time, d’Hormon was a professor at Peking University. During his tenure, who should be a librarian in the Peking University Library but Mao Zedong, later the first president of the People’s Republic of China. Whenever d’Hormon needed to borrow a book from the library, Mao would deliver the book to the professor in person, according to the Brochure of Sino-France Cultural Exchange in Beijing by Publicity Department of Beijing Haidian District Committee of the Communist Party of China.

D’Hormon lived in Beijing for 48 years, returning to France in 1954. He used his last 10 years to proofread the French edition of A Dream of Red Mansions, translated by Li Zhihua, a graduate from the Sino-French University. It should be noted that d’Hormon translated some of the poems from A Dream of Red Mansions in a style of ancient French poetry based on the Chinese poems original meaningsso that French readers might better understand the Chinese classic. The French edition of A Dream of Red Mansions was published posthumously and was well received by French readers.

D’Hormon remained a bachelor all his life and left behind no children. He spent almost half of his life in China and devoted the rest of that life towards researching Chinese culture after he returned to France.

Dr. Jean Bussiere (1872-1960)

Dr. Jean Bussiere came to China in 1912 and worked as a physician in Beijing’s French Legation Office . Later, Bussiere worked as the campus doctor at Yenching University in Beijing. When the Sino-French University was founded, Bussiere acted as the chief executive director.

Dr. Bussiere spent much of his life in the Xi Shan areaof Beijing. With superior knowledge regarding medicine, many nearby villagers visited the doctor seeking treatment for various maladies. Much of the time, Dr. Bussiere treated them for free., making him a popular figure in the area..

Bussiere was a key figure within the circle of French expatriates living in China. The living room of Xi Shan villa was an important place for Beijing’s French population to congregate. He accompanied the French poet-diplomat and Nobel Prize winner Saint-John Perse on his travels through north China to help the latter know more about China. . . .