After being rescheduled four times due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the Asian Civilisations Museum will finally debut a new exhibition together with the Shanghai Museum in China, to commemorate the 30th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between our two nations.
The new showcase, named The Baoli Era: Treasures from the Tang Shipwreck Collection, runs from now till Jan 10, 2021 with free admission for all visitors. Boasting 168 treasures from the ACM’s Tang Shipwreck exhibition, 34 pieces of ceramics and bronze mirrors from the Shanghai Museum collection and 46 other special relics on loan; a total of 248 artefacts are on display at the museum of ancient Chinese art situated within Huangpu District’s People’s Square.
The Baoli Era: Treasures from the Tang Shipwreck Collection (Credit: Shanghai Museum)
Besides being the Shanghai Museum’s first international collaborative exhibition to take place after it resumed operations post-lockdown, the presentation is also significant as it is the first time an exhibition on the Tang Shipwreck collection is held on such a large scale in China.
To give a little background, the Tang Shipwreck (which has its own Wikipedia page) was only discovered by chance in 1998 and the sunken Arab ship from nearly 1100 years ago was found to be bearing a precious cargo of ceramics, gold and silver, set sail from the port of Canton.
Visitors can look forward to appreciating the lifestyle of the prosperous Tang dynasty people and get familiar with the culture of that era while revisiting the history of the Maritime Silk Road here.
The Baoli Era: Treasures from the Tang Shipwreck Collection (Credit: Shanghai Museum)
While 168 artefacts from the ACM’s collection are currently on loan to the Shanghai Museum, Singaporeans will meanwhile get to admire over 900 treasures still on display in ACM’s Tang Shipwreck gallery.
Admission continues to be free for Singaporeans and PRs so they may browse the large collection that’s a mainstay at the ACM. As a plus, guided small-group public tours have resumed too, and those interested may register for a slot here to learn more about the momentous archeological discovery.
You may not be able to travel now, but you can travel back in time to Asia 1000 years ago just by taking a trip down to the Asian Civilisations Museum’s Tang Shipwreck gallery. Historical treasures await your discovery.
The Baoli Era: Treasures from the Tang Shipwreck Collection runs from now till Jan 10 2021 at the Shanghai Museum while the Tang Shipwreck gallery is open at the Asian Civilisations Museum. More information available here.
