The long road to recovery will eventually achieve a dream of going home. On July 24th, the ceremony for the return of the Buddha's head in Tianlongshan Grottoes was held in Taiyuan, Shanxi. The Buddha's head on the northern wall of the eighth cave of Tianlongshan Grottoes, which has been lost overseas for nearly a hundred years, will eventually return to its native land.
The Buddha's head in Tianlong Mountain is no stranger to Chinese people. On New Year's Eve this year, with the return of the100th lost cultural relic to the motherland in 2020, the Buddha's head appeared in CCTV Spring Festival Evening, which made the people of the whole country remember this "most beautiful smile" belonging to the prosperous times. Now, the Buddha has finally come home, and his smile is blooming again in his hometown Tianlong Mountain. Look again, I saw that his bun was low and flat, his face was round, his eyes were slightly closed, his lips were slightly pursed, and his smile implicitly passed through the joys and sorrows of nearly a hundred years. He still has peace and tranquility for over 1400 years.
All returns are summoning; All pursuits will have an echo. After a tortuous pursuit process, it became the first precious lost cultural relic to return to Tianlong Mountain Grottoes from Japan in the past century. As Li Qun, vice minister of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism and director of National Cultural Heritage Administration, said, "The return of Buddha's head shows the road to the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, expounds the idea of making cultural relics in China, shows the United strength of Chinese sons and daughters, and helps the new journey of cultural relics protection and utilization. The context is connected with the national movement, and the road of a thousand years of Tianlong Mountain, a hundred years of lost history and returning to prosperity embodies the patriotic heart of Chinese people at home and abroad who cherish cultural genes, which is a vivid footnote to the road of Chinese national rejuvenation.
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Wandering for a hundred years, the way home is tortuous and wonderful.
Wandering, returning home, going home, seemingly like other ordinary "wanderers", is full of hardships behind the smile, and the road home is tortuous and wonderful.
Tianlongshan Grottoes in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province are national key cultural relics protection units. They were excavated in the Eastern Wei Dynasty, the Northern Qi Dynasty and the Sui and Tang Dynasties, forming 25 caves and more than 500 statues. They are famous for their exquisite stone carving art and distinctive regional style, and occupy an important position in the history of world sculpture art, reflecting the brilliant achievements of grotto art from the Southern and Northern Dynasties to the Sui and Tang Dynasties in China. In particular, the statues in the Tang Dynasty are beautiful, graceful, elegant and colorful, and are known as the "Tianlongshan style", which is an outstanding representative of the grotto sculpture art in the same period.
In the 1920s, driven by the Japanese antique dealer "Yamanaka Chamber of Commerce", Tianlongshan Grottoes were robbed on a large scale. More than 240 statues were stolen, and almost all of them were stolen from overseas. Now it is collected in Japanese, European and American museums and private hands, and the damage degree is the highest in China Cave Temple.
The loss of cultural relics in China Cave Temple is a typical epitome of being forced to leave the original territory and live in a foreign country due to war plunder, cultural plunder, illegal trade and other reasons, and it is also the hardest hit area of cultural relics loss in China since modern times. Deng Chao, director of National Cultural Heritage Administration Cultural Relics Return Office, participated in the whole process of returning the Buddha statue, knowing that it was not easy. "The return of every national treasure is not easy. National Cultural Heritage Administration has always insisted on pursuing stolen and illegally exported cultural relics in history. The return of Buddha's head benefited from a lot of investigation and research in the early stage, which laid the foundation for the return of Buddha's head.
Looking carefully at the "archives" of this national treasure, the reporter learned a detailed timetable for recourse, which is even more memorable:
September 2020 14
According to the monitoring of National Cultural Heritage Administration, Japanese Toyo International Auction Co., Ltd. plans to auction a "Tang Tianlong Mountain Stone Carved Buddha's Head, which is suspected to be a historical loss of cultural relics in Tianlong Mountain Grottoes in Taiyuan City, Shanxi Province;
September 15 to June 10
According to the information released by the auction, National Cultural Heritage Administration organized the Tianlongshan Grottoes Museum in Taiyuan and related experts to identify the lot, and judged that the stolen Buddha head belonged to the main Buddha statue on the north wall of Cave 8 in Tianlongshan Grottoes, and it was stolen around 1924 and illegally transported out of the country;
Subsequently, National Cultural Heritage Administration started the recourse mechanism, and determined the working goal of "stopping the auction and striving for the return".
65438+ 10 month 15
Send a letter to the auction house, requesting to terminate the auction and publicity activities related to Buddha's head and withdraw the auction;
65438+1October 16
The auction house actively cooperated, made a decision to withdraw the auction and terminated the related publicity. National Cultural Heritage Administration contacted Zhang Rong, chairman of the auction house, to encourage the return of cultural relics;
65438+1October 3 1
Zhang Rong negotiated with Japanese cultural relics holders to complete the purchase. After full communication with National Cultural Heritage Administration, he decided to donate the Buddha's head to the government of China.
165438+ 10/7
The Chinese Embassy in Japan held a handover ceremony of cultural relics, and Zhang Rong donated the Buddha's head in Tianlong Mountain Grottoes to National Cultural Heritage Administration, China for safekeeping.
After that, National Cultural Heritage Administration organized the China Cultural Relics Exchange Center, Beijing Lu Xun Museum and other relevant units, and with the full support of our embassy in Japan and Beijing Customs, obtained the cultural relics exit permit from the Japanese cultural department.
65438+February 12 12 hours
The Buddha's head arrived safely in Beijing and was sent to the warehouse on the same day, and the Buddha's head returned to the embrace of the motherland;
65438+February 14
National Cultural Heritage Administration organized experts from relevant departments to conduct physical identification and health assessment of cultural relics, and confirmed that the Buddha head belonged to the Sui Dynasty and was tentatively designated as a national first-class cultural relic;
202 1 February Night 1 1
On Lunar New Year's Eve, with the return of the100th lost cultural relic to the motherland in 2020, the Buddha head of Tianlong Mountain appeared at the Spring Festival Gala of the Central Radio and Television General Station to welcome the Spring Festival and celebrate the reunion with the people of the whole country.
From February 2002 to April 2008, 65438
Fotou met with the audience at the special exhibition "Four Blessings of Xian Tong-National Treasure Return and Digital Restoration of Tianlongshan Grottoes" in Lu Xun Museum.
July 24(th)
The Buddha's head was assigned by National Cultural Heritage Administration to Taiyuan Tianlongshan Grottoes Museum for collection, becoming the first lost overseas cultural relic to return to Tianlong Mountain.
At this point, the "wanderer" road to home officially ended successfully.
▲ Photo courtesy of National Cultural Heritage Administration, Buddha head of Tianlongshan Grottoes
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"Are you relieved? -"I'm relieved.
"Let the Buddha return to his native land, is the best compliment to me. At the handover ceremony, Zhang Rong, a Buddha head donor and overseas Chinese living in Japan, was awarded the title of "honorary citizen" by Taiyuan City. " I'm going to donate all the 300,000 yuan I just received to support the recovery and return of cultural relics. This is Zhang Rong's first reaction when he received the certificate.
At the beginning of this year, when CCTV released the news of the return of the Buddha's head in Tianlongshan Grottoes in the Spring Festival Evening, it aroused great concern from compatriots at home and abroad. Zhang Rong received thousands of messages of blessing on her mobile phone. He said, "I believe that moment also inspired all China people, enhanced national cohesion, and made everyone realize how powerful our motherland is.
Zhang Rong, who was born in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, was exposed to China's traditional works of art since he was a child, and later abandoned medicine to become an antique collector. In Japan, he founded several auction houses and became a senior expert on Japanese antiques. Over the past 20 years, Zhang Rong has repeatedly promoted the return of cultural relics lost in China to the motherland. He said, "I hope that the return of Buddha's head can serve as a link between the past and the future, so that more people can participate in the work of" returning to their homes "of cultural relics.
It must be said that sometimes promoting the return of cultural relics depends on opportunities, and opportunities are often fleeting. Looking back on the road to Buddha's return, Zhang Rong was resolute and decisive, and a series of operations were almost completed in one go.
"The return of cultural relics is an' immediate' job. At that moment, if you don't take it off, it won't be yours anymore. If you pass by, you may never get it back. Zhang Rong sighed. In addition to the specific people who play a key role in key nodes, he also believes that the return of cultural relics should be a common cause of the public, and everyone can contribute to this great cause. " Now that the country is enriching the people and strengthening the country, Chinese people are confident that more overseas cultural relics will return! I hope more people regard the return of cultural relics as a kind of inheritance and form a habit. Zhang Rong said.
On the day of Buddha's return home, the special exhibition "The Return of National Treasures on the Road to Revival" was held at Tianlong Mountain Museum. In the center of the exhibition hall, Zhang stared at the "old friend" in the showcase-the Buddha head on the north wall of the eighth cave of Tianlongshan Grottoes. Staring quietly for a while, when he was about to turn around and leave, a media reporter quickly asked: "Are you relieved?" Zhang Rong calmly replied, "I'm relieved.
▲ "Fuxing Road National Treasure Return to Special Exhibition Site Xue Shuai Photo
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On the road to rejuvenation, more national treasures are on their way home.
In this special exhibition, due to the fact that the northern wall of the eighth cave where the Buddha's head was originally located is close to the cliff, the cliff has serious cracks, and it is difficult to avoid a certain degree of weathering when the Buddha's head is put back in place. Therefore, the Tianlongshan Grottoes Museum specially restored the eighth cave in the second exhibition hall through 3D printing technology, and it will be preserved and permanently exhibited here. Visitors can see the beauty of smiling Buddha heads when they come to the exhibition hall.
Strolling through the exhibition hall, you can learn about the process of the Buddha's head losing overseas and returning to the motherland in the limited space in the two units of "Time Gone". In the layout design of the special exhibition, the unique human and architectural elements of the eighth cave where the Buddha's head is located are applied to the space color design, material design and environmental design of the exhibition hall, and modern design concepts are used to show the audience multiple experiences of the new era, history and future fusion, so that the audience can feel the essence of Tianlong Mountain Grottoes culture through unique design.
"I deeply admire the kindness of Zhang Rong, the first benefactor of the Buddha. After carefully visiting the exhibition, Yue Xin of Shanxi Publishing Media Group said excitedly, "The return of the Buddha head in Tianlongshan Grottoes will encourage more people to carry forward the spirit of patriotism, promote the return of more lost cultural relics, and further encourage people to strengthen their cultural self-confidence.
In addition to the real national treasure, there is a rectangular touch screen on the wall of the first exhibition hall. There is a three-dimensional Buddha statue on the screen, which can be rotated and enlarged simply by clicking and sliding with your fingertips. From the style of the bun, to the texture of the clothing, and then to the text behind it, it has been carefully and completely restored. The bodhisattva on the south side of the east wall of Cave 6 in Tianlongshan Grottoes is now in the Cleveland Museum of Art in the United States. Thanks to digital restoration, people on the other side of the ocean can get a glimpse of it.
"I am excited to see the Buddha's head lost for nearly a hundred years return to my homeland, and I deeply feel that the cause of cultural relics has a long way to go. Zhao Li, a researcher at Xinjiang Jikucha Institute, is engaged in the investigation of overseas cultural relics loss. After returning from the Buddha's head, she really felt the great changes in the country in the past 100 years and felt that the national treasure was becoming more and more emboldened on the road to rejuvenation. " This is a successful example. With the maturity of "China Wisdom", "China Plan" and "China Experience", we will surely push more national treasures home safely! Zhao Li said.
▲ "National Treasure Return Special Exhibition on Fuxing Road" Photo by Xue Shuai
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The recovery of lost cultural relics and the return of the new international order are coming to the fore.
Of course, there are many well-known experts and scholars in the field of cultural relics among those who witnessed the return of Buddha. Taking this opportunity, the confrontation between ideas and opinions is essential.
On the afternoon of the Buddha's return, an academic seminar on the research and practice of cave temple protection in the new period was held immediately. Experts and scholars feel the firm belief and resolute action of the China Municipal Government in recovering and returning lost cultural relics and promoting exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations. Through discussion and exchange, they reached a consensus and unanimously decided to issue the Tianlong Mountain Initiative on Retrieving and Returning Cultural Relics of Cave Temples.
The Tianlong Mountain Initiative expounds the basic positions and viewpoints of experts in the field of protection and research of China Cave Temple, emphasizes the important value of China Cave Temple and its spirit, condemns the serious damage caused to China Cave Temple by war looting, theft and smuggling in history, and holds that the recovery and return of lost cultural relics in China Cave Temple is related to the cultural rights and national feelings of China people and is an indispensable work to protect the common cultural heritage of all mankind.
In order to promote the return of more lost cultural relics from cave temples to China, the Tianlong Mountain Initiative further proposes: support the principled position of the China government on the ownership of lost overseas cultural relics in China, and support the just cause of the original country to recover lost cultural relics; Give play to the role of cave temple protection and management institutions, scientific research institutions and institutions of higher learning; Encourage cultural relics shops, cultural relics auction companies, collectors and other market entities to improve their legal awareness and risk prevention capabilities; Guide social forces to participate in supporting the recovery and return of lost cultural relics; Call on all countries to establish an international rule system for the recovery and return of historical lost cultural relics, and improve the international cooperation mechanism for the recovery and return of cave temples.
The relevant person in charge of National Cultural Heritage Administration said that the Tianlong Mountain Initiative is the first academic conference document focusing on the cultural relics of cave temples in the field of recovery and return of lost cultural relics, which reflects the attitudes and opinions of experts and scholars in the field of cultural relics in China on the recovery and return of cultural relics of cave temples, and is of positive significance for rallying the consensus and strength of countries, relevant international organizations, domestic cultural relics institutions, cultural relics market participants and all sectors of society.
From the return of Buddha's head to the Tianlong Mountain Initiative, a passage in the preface hall of the special exhibition came to the reporter's mind more and more clearly: "This mountain was coveted a hundred years ago and experienced the worst looting in the history of China Cave Temple. Broken mountains and rivers, scattered Buddha heads and dusty treasures are the pain of the nation and the ruin of civilization. Today, the Buddha heads came back with smiles. Through the lush Tianlong Mountain, what we see is a vivid silhouette of China uniting and leading the people to overcome difficulties and achieve a great leap, and it is also the vigorous majestic posture of an ancient nation that has gone through ups and downs, perseverance and courage to move forward towards rejuvenation.
Indeed, history is the best textbook. Today, the eternal smile of Buddha soothes the pain of the vicissitudes of Tianlong Mountain for a hundred years, and the legend of the return of national treasure inspires the spiritual strength of Chinese people.
"For Tianlong Mountain, no century is so unforgettable; For the Chinese nation, no century has been so miserable and brilliant. Yu Hao, curator of Tianlongshan Grottoes Museum, said with emotion, "China's determination to inherit the excellent Chinese traditional culture has been rock-solid for a hundred years. Today, when we stand at a brand-new historical starting point and look into the distance, the lost cultural relics are ready to return to the new international order. Qian Qian's treasures scattered in a foreign land are on their way home, standing tall in the ancient civilization of the east of the world and rising with unprecedented confidence!
202 1 China Culture News July 29th
The eighth edition published a special report.
A hundred years later, "the most beautiful smile blooms again in Tianlong Mountain"
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Reporter: Xue Shuai
Editor: Gou Xiaoqing