In a departure from traditional religious themes, new murals at Tainan’s Nankunshen Daitian Temple (南鯤鯓代天府) feature departed and contemporary Taiwanese celebrities to commemorate their contributions to society.
While most temple murals are inspired by mythological or historical figures, Nankunshen Daitian — built in 1817 and widely hailed as the founding temple for Wang Ye worship in Taiwan — took a different tack, using images of Taiwanese celebrities and landscapes, temple board director Hou Hsien-hsun (侯賢遜) said on Sunday.
A collection of freshly painted murals line a hallway from the main worship hall to an auxiliary shrine, featuring individuals that include Lin Chieh-liang (林杰樑), who gained a reputation as a guardian of public health after giving valuable food safety advice amid a number of food scares in recent years, and the late Wang King-ho (王金河), a doctor popularly known as the “Father of Blackfoot Disease” for his work combating the disease.
Photo: Yang Chin-cheng, Taipei Times
Others depicted in the murals include 1968 Mexico City Olympics women’s 80m hurdles bronze medalist Chi Cheng (紀政), Nobel laureate Lee Yuan-tseh (李遠哲) and renowned painter and 228 Massacre victim Chen Cheng-po (陳澄波).
Hou said the murals, part of a recent renovation project, are the latest additions to a collection started two years ago that adorns the walls and pillars of the main worship hall with portraits of athletes such as NBA player Jeremy Lin (林書豪), former world No. 1 golfer Yani Tseng (曾雅妮) and major league pitchers Chen Wei-yin (陳偉殷) and Wang Chien-ming (王建民), as well as philanthropist Chen Shu-chu (陳樹菊) and the late painter Hung Tung (洪通).
Taiwanese landscapes are another prominent motif of the murals, including an ancient salt field and a newly constructed crystal church in Tainan’s Beimen District (北門), Hou added.
Visitor Yang Jui-che (楊睿哲) said that looking at the temple’s murals was like reading a Taiwanese history book, adding that photographs of the murals had gone viral among the nation’s netizens.
A strong continental cold air mass is to bring pollutants to Taiwan from tomorrow, the Ministry of Environment said today, as it issued an “orange” air quality alert for most of the country. All of Taiwan except for Hualien and Taitung counties is to be under an “orange” air quality alert tomorrow, indicating air quality that is unhealthy for sensitive groups. In China, areas from Shandong to Shanghai have been enveloped in haze since Saturday, the ministry said in a news release. Yesterday, hourly concentrations of PM2.5 in these areas ranged from 65 to 160 micrograms per cubic meter (mg/m³), and pollutants were
Taiwan’s armed forces have established response protocols for a wide range of sudden contingencies, including the “Wan Chun Plan” to protect the head of state, the Ministry of Defense (MND) said today. After US President Donald Trump on Saturday launched a series of airstrikes in Venezuela and kidnapped Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, concerns have been raised as to whether China would launch a similar “decapitation strike” on Taiwan. The armed forces regularly coordinate with relevant agencies and practice drills to ensure preparedness for a wide range of scenarios, Vice Minister of National Defense Hsu Szu-chien (徐斯儉) told reporters before a
EVA Airways on Saturday said that it had suspended a pilot and opened an investigation after he allegedly lost his temper and punched the first officer several times as their plane was taxiing before takeoff at Los Angeles International Airport. According to a report published on Thursday by The Reporter, the incident occurred after the flight’s Malaysian first officer tried to warn the Taiwanese pilot, surnamed Wen (文), that he was taxiing faster than the speed limit of 30 knots (55.6kph). After alerting the pilot several times without response, the first officer manually applied the brakes in accordance with standard operating
The New Taipei City Social Welfare Department on Thursday celebrated Paralympic competitor Chen Tzu-wei (張孜維), who received last year’s national Golden Eagle award for exemplary achievement by Taiwanese with disabilities. Chen, who suffers from childhood-onset muscular dystrophy, did not attend the first award ceremony held by the Ministry of Health and Welfare in November due to illness. Chen was formally presented with the award at the department, where he gave thanks to government workers for supporting his education and livelihood, the department said in a statement. Chen was raised by the Ai-hsin Home for Persons with Disabilities in the city’s Bali District (八里)
RSS