A private museum in Taichung dedicated to Lin Hsien-tang (林獻堂), a politician and activist who advocated self-rule, is to have its grand opening today, the city’s Cultural Affairs Bureau said.
Experts have vetted the Lin Hsien-tang Museum’s substantial collection of artifacts for authenticity and historical value according to the Museum Act (博物館法), the bureau said on Tuesday.
The private museum is the first of its kind in the city and the second in the nation, it added.
Photo: Chen Chien-chih, Taipei Times
As a leading voice in petitioning the former Japanese empire to establish a Taiwanese parliament, Lin earned the nicknames “Father of the Taiwanese Parliament” and “Taiwan’s First Citizen,” said Lin Fang-ying, chairwoman of Ming Tai High School, which founded the museum.
A descendent of Lin Hsien-tang, she had collected more than 10,000 objects linked to him and the Lin clan, she said, adding that she donated them to the memorial wing the school had dedicated to him.
The museum’s opening would coincide with the 70th anniversary of the high school, which Lin Hsien-tang cofounded with other gentry from Taichung, she said.
For the past two years, the school has planned to upgrade the Lin Hsien-tang memorial wing into a proper museum, increasing its floorspace from 100 ping (331m2) to 250 ping and tripling the collection of artifacts, she said.
The collection contains items such as Lin Hsien-tang’s diary, manuscripts and other historical documents of note, including calligraphy by renowned Chinese philosopher Liang Qichao (梁啟超) created in 1911 to mark his visit to the Lin residence, she said.
Other antiques — such as a 150-year-old camphor cabinet, chairs with shell inlays, a redwood bed, utensils and deeds belonging to the Lin clan — deal broadly with the material culture of the late Qing Dynasty and Japanese colonial eras, she said.
The museum is awaiting several explanatory labels for the artifacts, she said, adding that the school’s board of trustees hopes they will provide young Taiwanese with insight into the history that forms their shared heritage.
The Sports Administration yesterday demanded an apology from the national table tennis association for barring 17-year-old Yeh Yi-tian (葉伊恬) from competing in the upcoming World Table Tennis (WTT) United States Smash tournament in Las Vegas this July. The sports agency said in a statement that the Chinese Taipei Table Tennis Association (CTTTA) must explain to the public why it withdrew Yeh from the WTT tournament in Las Vegas. The sports agency said it contacted the association to express its disapproval of the decision-making process after receiving a complaint from Yeh’s coach, Chuang
Taipei has once again made it to the top 100 in Oxford Economics’ Global Cities Index 2025 report, moving up five places from last year to 60. The annual index, which was published last month, evaluated 1,000 of the most populated metropolises based on five indices — economics, human capital, quality of life, environment and governance. New York maintained its top spot this year, placing first in the economics index thanks to the strength of its vibrant financial industry and economic stability. Taipei ranked 263rd in economics, 44th in human capital, 15th in quality of life, 284th for environment and 75th in governance,
The Hualien Branch of the High Court today sentenced the main suspect in the 2021 fatal derailment of the Taroko Express to 12 years and six months in jail in the second trial of the suspect for his role in Taiwan’s deadliest train crash. Lee Yi-hsiang (李義祥), the driver of a crane truck that fell onto the tracks and which the the Taiwan Railways Administration's (TRA) train crashed into in an accident that killed 49 people and injured 200, was sentenced to seven years and 10 months in the first trial by the Hualien District Court in 2022. Hoa Van Hao, a
Control Yuan Secretary-General Lee Chun-yi (李俊俋) tendered his resignation last night, admitting that he had misused a government vehicle, as reported by media. His resignation was immediately accepted by the Control Yuan. In a statement explaining why he had resigned, Lee apologized for using a Control Yuan vehicle to transport his dog to a pet grooming salon on May 20. The issue first came to light late last month, when TVBS News reported that Lee had instructed his driver to take the dog to the salon. The news channel broadcast photos that it said were taken by an unnamed whistle-blower, which purportedly showed the
RSS