A 1.30m tall Matsu statue, carved out of emerald in China, landed at Taichung Harbor yesterday after making the short crossing from Meizhou Island off the coast of southern China.
The statue, weighing 1.5 tonnes, was created by Fujian-based Chinese master sculptor She Guoping (佘國平) for a jewelry company in Shanghai.
It is to be donated to the Jenn Lann Temple (鎮瀾宮) in Greater Tai-chung’s Dajia (大甲) district, one of the country’s most popular Matsu temples.
Photo: Yu Po-lin, Taipei Times
The dedication and donation ceremony was held in Meizhou on Saturday.
Matsu (媽祖), the goddess of the sea, is one of the most popular deities in Taiwan. According to legend, Matsu was a girl from the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) who was deified posthumously in honor of the assistance she offered to seafarers. Since being brought to Taiwan by Chinese immigrants in the 1600s, Matsu traditions have attracted many local worshipers.
Greater Taichung Mayor Jason Hu (胡志強) yesterday received the valuable statue, along with Jenn Lann Temple president Yen Ching-piao (顏清標).
Photo: Yu Po-lin, Taipei Times
Hu said the religious event, which he described as an exchange of beliefs and feelings between people from the two sides of the Taiwan Strait, would pull the two sides closer together.
Asked about the statue’s value, Jenn Lann Temple vice president Cheng Ming-kun (鄭銘坤) declined to give an exact figure, but said religious belief is “priceless.”
According to Chinese-language media reports, the value of the emerald statue is at least 180 million yuan (US$28.25 million).
A four-day, three-night parade will be held in Taichung to celebrate its arrival.
The procession is scheduled to make stops at major Matsu temples around the city, before reaching the Jenn Lann Temple on Sunday, where an enshrining ceremony will take place.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
Starlux Airlines, Taiwan’s newest international carrier, has announced it would apply to join the Oneworld global airline alliance before the end of next year. In an investor conference on Monday, Starlux Airlines chief executive officer Glenn Chai (翟健華) said joining the alliance would help it access Taiwan. Chai said that if accepted, Starlux would work with other airlines in the alliance on flight schedules, passenger transits and frequent flyer programs. The Oneworld alliance has 13 members, including American Airlines, British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Qantas, and serves more than 900 destinations in 170 territories. Joining Oneworld would also help boost
RSS