A ceremony was held at the southern branch of the National Palace Museum (NPM) in Chiayi County yesterday for its soft opening with the attendance of President Ma Ying-jeou (馬英九), Hong Kong film star Jackie Chan (成龍) and NPM Director Feng Ming-chu (馮明珠).
During the six-month soft opening period, the museum is to be open only to visitors who schedule appointments in advance. Appointments for all of next month are already fully booked, while registration for visits in February is to begin on Jan. 20, the museum administration said.
Ma thanked those who were involved in the establishment of the branch, which was first envisioned 15 years ago.
Ma said the opening of the southern branch was the best birthday present for the NPM, which is celebrating its 90th anniversary this year. The museum was originally established in Beijing in 1925 to showcase Qing Dynasty imperial collections.
The collections including more than 600,000 artifacts and artworks were moved to Taiwan in 1948 and 1949 during the Chinese Civil War, and were first displayed to the public in Taipei in 1965 after a new building was completed in Taipei’s Waishuangxi (外雙溪).
Ma said he hoped the Cabinet would review coordination, planning and division of labor among governmental agencies to avoid similar delays in other projects.
Chiayi County Commissioner Helen Chang (張花冠) said Chiayi residents have waited for this day for more than 10 years, becoming even more determined over that period to make art and culture the focus of development in the county.
The museum’s 10 exhibitions showcase a variety of Asian textiles, Buddhist art, Imari porcelain wares from Japan, South Asian costumes, Asian tea culture, Islamic carved jades, Goryeo Celadon ceramic wares from South Korea, blue and white Ming Dynasty porcelain, the history of Chiayi and a multimedia introduction to Asian art.
Branded as a “museum of Asian art and culture,” the 70-hectare facility is to collect, research, preserve and exhibit artifacts and relics from across Asia.
Three Taiwanese airlines have prohibited passengers from packing Bluetooth earbuds and their charger cases in checked luggage. EVA Air and Uni Air said that Bluetooth earbuds and charger cases are categorized as portable electronic devices, which should be switched off if they are placed in checked luggage based on international aviation safety regulations. They must not be in standby or sleep mode. However, as charging would continue when earbuds are placed in the charger cases, which would contravene international aviation regulations, their cases must be carried as hand luggage, they said. Tigerair Taiwan said that earbud charger cases are equipped
Foreign travelers entering Taiwan on a short layover via Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport are receiving NT$600 gift vouchers from yesterday, the Tourism Administration said, adding that it hopes the incentive would boost tourism consumption at the airport. The program, which allows travelers holding non-Taiwan passports who enter the country during a layover of up to 24 hours to claim a voucher, aims to promote attractions at the airport, the agency said in a statement on Friday. To participate, travelers must sign up on the campaign Web site, the agency said. They can then present their passport and boarding pass for their connecting international
UNILATERAL MOVES: Officials have raised concerns that Beijing could try to exert economic control over Kinmen in a key development plan next year The Civil Aviation Administration (CAA) yesterday said that China has so far failed to provide any information about a new airport expected to open next year that is less than 10km from a Taiwanese airport, raising flight safety concerns. Xiamen Xiangan International Airport is only about 3km at its closest point from the islands in Kinmen County — the scene of on-off fighting during the Cold War — and construction work can be seen and heard clearly from the Taiwan side. In a written statement sent to Reuters, the CAA said that airports close to each other need detailed advanced
The age requirement for commercial pilots and airline transport pilots is to be lowered by two years, to 18 and 21 years respectively, to expand the pool of pilots in accordance with international standards, the Ministry of Transportation and Communications announced today. The changes are part of amendments to articles 93, 119 and 121 of the Regulations Governing Licenses and Ratings for Airmen (航空人員檢定給證管理規則). The amendments take into account age requirements for aviation personnel certification in the Convention on International Civil Aviation and EU’s aviation safety regulations, as well as the practical needs of managing aviation personnel licensing, the ministry said. The ministry
RSS