In contrast to the West, where diamonds, gold and silver have usually been highly valued, in China bronzes and jades were chosen early on for the societyâe(tm)s most valued artefacts, and retained this very high status over millennia. Bronze and jades were used in China for ritual and burial, and were thus associated with the sacred worlds of the ancestors and spirits. In later China, these precious relics of the past were collected by rulers and scholars as routes to understanding a distant golden age. These ancient objects, some dating from the neolithic period, set the artistic standard for all time; this is where Chinese art begins. Chinese bronzes, in particular, are one of the worldâe(tm)s major art forms. Few if any other ancient cultures achieved the artistic excellence and technical virtuosity in bronze attained in China. Using a unique casting method involving multiple ceramic section moulds, the Chinese cast vessels, weapons and ornaments of great beauty and elegance. Jade, too, is central to Chinaâe(tm)s culture. This tough translucent stone has been worked to produce the most prized ornaments and ceremonial implements from the Neolithic period to the present day. The jades featured in this catalogue, carved by some of the groups of ancient inhabitants in the Shanghai area. They include wonderful, decorated ritual jades, cong, bi discs, weapons and ornaments. This catalogue not only celebrates an important collection, but highlights the extraordinary skills of the craftsmen of very early cultures, placing the objects in their historical and archaeological context. Here are exquisite objects made for the ancient Chinese elite and subsequently revered by emperors and collectors alike.

From the 1790s until World War I, Western museums filled their shelves with art and antiquities from around the world. These objects are now widely regarded as stolen from their countries of origin, and demands for their repatriation grow louder by the day. In The Compensations of Plunder, Justin M. Jacobs brings to light the historical context of the exodus of cultural treasures from northwestern China. Based on a close analysis of previously neglected archives in English, French, and Chinese, Jacobs finds that many local elites in China acquiesced to the removal of art and antiquities abroad, understanding their trade as currency for a cosmopolitan elite. In the decades after the 1911 Revolution, however, these antiquities went from being “diplomatic capital” to disputed icons of the emerging nation-state. A new generation of Chinese scholars began to criminalize the prior activities of archaeologists, erasing all memory of the pragmatic barter relationship that once existed in China. Recovering the voices of those local officials, scholars, and laborers who shaped the global trade in antiquities, The Compensations of Plunder brings historical grounding to a highly contentious topic in modern Chinese history and informs heated debates over cultural restitution throughout the world.

Many cultures around the world have used bird feathers as decorative accessories to denote status, wealth, and even royalty. Nowhere did this unusual art form reach greater popularity than in China, beginning a thousand years ago and continuing to this day. Using the kingfisher-with its uniquely iridescent range of ultramarine to bright turquoise-blue feathers-as their bird of choice, Chinese artisans created extraordinary objects, rendering the many-hued feathers with exquisite technique. The sheer breadth of these objects is staggering, from massive eight-foot-tall screens to tiny two-inch-long hair pins, from ornately ornamental lanterns to elegantly simple bird cages. Beverley Jackson has once again gathered an exceptional group of objects for study from great museums and private collections alike. Her lively, informative text and unique selection of historical photographs make KINGFISHER BLUE a coffee table book that reads like a novel. The first book-length treatment on this subject. With 150 full-color photographs throughout.

"A volume that demands to be held." --Los Angeles Review of Books True stories of glamour, drama, and tragedy told through five generations of a Shanghai family, from the last days of imperial rule to the Cultural Revolution. A high position bestowed by China's empress dowager grants power and wealth to the Sun family. For Isabel, growing up in glamorous 1930s and '40s Shanghai, it is a life of utmost privilege. But while her scholar father and fashionable mother shelter her from civil war and Japanese occupation, they cannot shield the family forever. When Mao comes to power, eighteen-year-old Isabel journeys to Hong Kong, not realizing that she will make it her home--and that she will never see her father again. She returns to Shanghai fifty years later with her daughter, Claire, to confront their family's past--one they discover is filled with love and betrayal, kidnappers and concubines, glittering palaces and underworld crime bosses. Lavishly illustrated and meticulously researched, Remembering Shanghai follows five generations from a hardscrabble village to the bright lights of Hong Kong. By turns harrowing and heartwarming, this vivid memoir explores identity, loss, and redemption against an epic backdrop. WINNER OF 20 LITERARY AND DESIGN AWARDS, INCLUDING: Writer's Digest GRAND PRIZE Rubery Book Award BOOK OF THE YEAR IAN Independent Author Network OUTSTANDING MEMOIR IPPY Independent Publisher Book Awards BEST FIRST BOOK Reader Views GLOBAL AWARD

Inspire children to fall in love with the world they live in with Tiny Travelers! "A+ educational content....Wonderful... to share with young kids -- to broaden their horizons and discover new places of interest!” — Common Sense Media“br> The Tiny Travelers “Treasure Quest” Series takes its readers on a fun-filled journey to discover what makes each country special with search-and-find features on every spread. In Tiny Travelers India Treasure Quest, readers journey from the magical Taj Mahal to fabulous Bollywood. From the beautiful festival of color Holi, to the incredible Himalayas, Tiny Travelers will enjoy getting closer to Indian culture, making magical discoveries along the way. Each illustrated spread invites children to discover hidden "treasures" - icons, animals, statues, instruments and more - that make up incredible India. “Most kids today are told that it’s a small world, when in fact it’s a really big world,” says Encantos CEO and Tiny Travelers creator and author Steven Wolfe Pereira. “And because the world is so big, there are many countries, cities, and cultures that have yet to be discovered and explored by kids. We created Tiny Travelers to foster curiosity, empathy, and understanding by learning what makes people and places so special.” “Purpose is at the core of the Tiny Travelers launch... The goal is to expose kids to the vastness and diversity of the world beyond their backyards, engendering empathy for different cultures, geographies and languages at a time when people all over the world are more connected than ever via digital platforms.”- Forbes “The books are full of fun facts, hidden “easter eggs” , and rhyme-based storytelling. They’re infused with keywords from the featured country’s language, helping teach kids correct pronunciation and useful phrases for travel.” - Parentology

Museums, International Exhibitions and China’s Cultural Diplomacy examines the role museums and, more specifically, international exhibitions, have played in shaping China’s international image to date. Drawing on theories and methods from museum studies and international relations, the book evaluates the contribution international exhibitions make to China’s cultural diplomacy strategy. Considering their impact on the country’s international image, Kong also probes the mechanisms and processes involved, examining in detail the policy of, and international activities promoted by, the Chinese government. The book also analyses the motives of the Chinese and overseas museums that host these exhibitions. Taking some major exhibitions that were on show in the UK during the 21st century as a representative case study, the book reveals the mechanisms by which these exhibitions were developed and shared overseas. Questioning who really shapes the image of China, Kong challenges Western assumptions and looks ahead to consider whether, moving forward, the Chinese government and museums could work together in a mutually beneficial way. Museums, International Exhibitions and China’s Cultural Diplomacy contributes to the growing literature on museums and diplomacy. As such, it will be of interest to academics and students engaged in the study of museums and heritage, international relations, culture, politics, China and wider Asia.

In 1400 an immense Chinese fleet of hundreds of ships and tens of thousands of men sailed through the seas, reaching Indonesia, India, Persia, Arabia and Africa: sent by a proud emperor to bring to the world the glory and the power of the Ming, was commanded by the most famous of the Chinese admirals, an eunuch named Zheng He. The ships carried valuable books, precious fabrics, delicate and beautiful ceramics, in addition to gold and silver destined for the princes of the visited countries, and were taking back in China exotic merchandise to show at court with the ambassadors of the Asian world who prostrated themselves in submission: for this reason they were called Treasures Ships. The history and descriptions of the peoples met are presented based on the news collected by previous and following travellers, as well as by the chroniclers who followed the fleet leaving a testimony of the voyages that had been accomplished. Despite the fact that the surviving information is very limited, this book narrates the missions of the Fleet of the Treasures between 1405 and 1433, attempting to reconstruct the routes likely to have been followed on the basis of the sea and wind conditions, phased by the monsoon cycle and detected today with precision by the satellites. After a thirty-year long endeavour the Chinese retired from the sea, cancelled the travels reports, destroyed the ships renouncing to sail and remained helpless in face of the penetration of European Navies before and of the Japanese aggression afterward. Today, China is currently rebuilding a large fleet that is already carrying its weight in home and neighbouring waters and its flag in the oceans, retracing the endeavour accomplished 600 years ago.

This work presents detailed commentary on the craftsmanship and motifs of the implements associated with the Chinese scholar's studio. These treasures - including brushes, inkstones, waterdroppers, toggles, figurines and scholar's rocks - embody the shared wisdom, traditions and values of the Chinese literati who governed China for more than two millennia. An understanding of the symbolism with which these objects are so artfully embellished is necessary for an understanding of classical Chinese civilization.