Culture
15:05, 14-Jan-2019
Lists of Chinese opera programs for imperial family found in Palace Museum
Updated
14:23, 17-Jan-2019
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The Palace Museum in Beijing said it has discovered two program lists of traditional Chinese opera that were staged for the imperial family at the Chinese New Year’s Eve over 200 years ago. Some media outlets have called it "the program lists of an ancient version of the well-known Spring Festival Gala."
The lists were found by artisans on Wednesday during the renovation work of the Hall of Mental Cultivation, the former residence of eight emperors of the Qing Dynasty (1636-1912 AD), according to the museum.
A construction worker gazes at the ceiling inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation in the Palace Museum in Beijing, China. /Photo via China News Service
A construction worker gazes at the ceiling inside the Hall of Mental Cultivation in the Palace Museum in Beijing, China. /Photo via China News Service
The lists are written on soft, cloth-like paper that has a pale yellow color. The handwriting is barely recognizable. A total of 19 opera names were written on each list, together with the names of the cast members.
The opera names on the two lists are the same, but with different cast introductions – a brief one and a detailed one.
Researchers believe the lists were made in 1759, during the reign of Emperor Qianlong, and they can help further the study of opera and festival cultures of the Qing imperial family.
The relics will be exhibited to the public in the future.
(Top Photo: Dr. Shan Jixiang, director of the Palace Museum (C) and Zheng Xinmiao, director of the Institute of Gugong Studies, hold a treasure box at the Hall of Mental Cultivation in the Palace Museum. /Photo via China News Service)
Source(s): Xinhua News Agency