10 April,2011 07:48 AM IST | | Lhendup G Bhutia
With 95 ancient artefacts sourced from 10 different chinese museums, ancient treasuresu00a0of China is a must-watch
Initially, when the director of the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly called Prince of Wales Museum) wanted to bring the Ancient Treasures Of China exhibition to the museum, he had a problem.
An ancient pot
The government authorities wanted at least 10,000 square feet devoted to the show. As Sabyasachi Mukherjee, the director of the museum, explained, "We don't have any gallery which is that big." Eventually, a solution was found.
Three galleries of the museum were used, a total of 8,000 square feet of display space. The 95 artifacts at the exhibition range from the Neolithic period to the 19th century. And going through the various pieces, one can get a sense of how material and spiritual lifeu00a0 has changed in China.
There are soil-breaking tools, ploughshares, hoes and sickles from the Neolithic period, bronze swords with scabbards during the Zhou dynasty (considered to be the finest metal works of the ancient world), and what is probably the biggest draw of the show, two terracotta warriors. The terracotta army, which dates back to 210 BC, was only recently discovered in 1974. According to estimates there are over 8,000 soldiers, 130 chariots with 520 horses and 150 cavalry horses.
Au00a0replica of a barnu00a0at the exhibition
A form of funerary art, the army was buried with the body of emperor Qin Shi Huang so that he could lead the army and rule an empire in his after life. The exhibition also displays many other forms of funerary art -- sculptures of musicians, servants with plates full of food, all to serve the dead king.
Mukherjee says, "What makes this exhibition special is the range of artifacts on display. You would not get to see all of them under one roof, even in China." The 95 exhibits have been sourced from 10 museums in six different provinces.
At: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya, 159/61 MG Road, Fort
Call: 22844484
