An inscription found in the tomb of Zhu Yihai (朱以海, 1618-1662), Prince of Lu during the Ming Dynasty, is on display at the Historical Folk Museum in Kinmen County.
The inscription, which was carved into a tombstone and buried with Zhu shortly after his death in the county in 1662, was discovered during construction work in 1959 and transferred to the National Museum of History in Taipei.
The 726-character inscription records Zhu’s visits with civilian officials and militia generals in China’s Zhejiang, Fujian and Guangdong provinces after the fall of the Ming Dynasty in 1644.
Zhu and three other princes led resistance movements — called the Southern Ming — against the military of the Manchu Qing Dynasty.
At the official opening of the exhibition on Friday last week, former National Museum of History director Chang Yui-tan (張譽騰) said he is glad to see the inscription returned to Kinmen for the exhibition and hopes the county would become a center for Southern Ming studies.
Since the inscription is to return to Taipei after the exhibition, a 3D-printed replica was made and presented to county government, National Museum of History director Chen Teng-chin (陳登欽) said.
The exhibition is significant as culture from both Minnan (Southern Fujian Province) and the Southern Ming enable the county to act as a bridge between Taiwan and China, County Secretary-General Lin De-gong (林德恭) said.
The inscription also says that Zhu died of asthma on Kinmen and not at sea on the orders of Koxinga (Cheng Cheng-kung, 鄭成功) as recorded in the dynastic history of the Ming, indicating that Zhu had died about six months after Koxinga’s death.
The exhibition is part of activities to mark the 400th anniversary of Zhu’s birth and is to run until Aug. 30.
The first two F-16V Bock 70 jets purchased from the US are expected to arrive in Taiwan around Double Ten National Day, which is on Oct. 10, a military source said yesterday. Of the 66 F-16V Block 70 jets purchased from the US, the first completed production in March, the source said, adding that since then three jets have been produced per month. Although there were reports of engine defects, the issue has been resolved, they said. After the jets arrive in Taiwan, they must first pass testing by the air force before they would officially become Taiwan’s property, they said. The air force
GLOBAL: Although Matsu has limited capacity for large numbers of domestic tourists, it would be a great high-end destination for international travelers, an official said Lienchiang County’s (Matsu) unique landscape and Cold War history give it great potential to be marketed as a destination for international travelers, Tourism Administration Director General Chen Yu-hsiu (陳玉秀) said at the weekend. Tourism officials traveled to the outlying island for the Matsu Biennial, an art festival that started on Friday to celebrate Matsu’s culture, history and landscape. Travelers to Matsu, which lies about 190km northwest of Taipei, must fly or take the state-run New Taima passenger ship. However, flights are often canceled during fog season from April to June. Chen spoke about her vision to promote Matsu as a tourist attraction in
PAWSITIVE IMPACT: A shop owner said that while he adopted cats to take care of rodents, they have also attracted younger visitors who also buy his dried goods In Taipei’s Dadaocheng (大稻埕), cats lounging in shops along Dihua Street do more than nap amid the scent of dried seafood. Many have become beloved fixtures who double as photography models, attracting visitors and helping boost sales in one of the capital’s most historic quarters. A recent photo contest featuring more than a dozen shop cats drew more than 2,200 submissions, turning everyday cat-spotting into a friendly competition that attracted amateur and professional photographers. “It’s rare to see cats standing, so when it suddenly did, it felt like a lucky cat,” said Sabrina Hsu (徐淳蔚), who won the NT$10,000 top prize in
STRIKE: Some travel agencies in Taiwan said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group tours to the country were proceeding as planned A planned strike by airport personnel in South Korea has not affected group tours to the country from Taiwan, travel agencies said yesterday. They added that they were closely monitoring the situation. Personnel at 15 airports, including Seoul’s Incheon and Gimpo airports, are to go on strike. They announced at a news conference on Tuesday that the strike would begin on Friday next week and continue until the Mid-Autumn Festival next month. Some travel agencies in Taiwan, including Cola Tour, Lion Travel, SET Tour and ezTravel, said that they were aware of the situation in South Korea, and that group