Jockey Club brings splendour of Ming Dynasty to Hong Kong

12/15/2015

The glories of the Ming dynasty will be on powerful display at the Hong Kong Museum of History following the opening tomorrow of The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series - The Radiant Ming 1368-1644 through the Min Chiu Society Collection,funded by The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust.  The exhibition features around 300 exhibits on loan from members of the Min Chiu Society.

Today (15 December), Club Steward Michael T H Lee joined Chief Secretary for Administration Carrie Lam, Chairman of The Min Chiu Society Frank Chan and former Chairman Frank Wu, History Museum Advisory Panel Chairman Stanley Wong, Director of Leisure and Cultural Services Michelle Li and Hong Kong Museum of History Director Belinda Wong as officiating guests at the opening ceremony.

Mr Lee told the guests that enabling such exhibitions to come to Hong Kong demonstrated the Club’s commitment to supporting arts and cultural development across the city, with its sponsorship having totalled over HK$3.1 billion over the past decade. He noted that the Club also sponsored a series of education and outreach programmes to enhance the interest of the younger generation in Chinese history and culture. “We thank the Leisure and Cultural Services Department and The Min Chiu Society for bringing such comprehensive exhibits of the Ming Dynasty to the Hong Kong Museum of History, and for helping enrich the exhibition with different programmes enabling the community to have a better understanding of the rich culture,” he said, adding that the brand new HKJC Series in 2015/2016 also featured national-level cultural relics from Han and Qing dynasties in two exhibitions held earlier, aimed at furthering the understanding of Hong Kong people towards these three prosperous Chinese dynasties and the contributions of their cultural influences.

Running for nearly four months, The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series - The Radiant Ming 1368-1644 through the Min Chiu Society Collection,features such highlight exhibits as imperial porcelains, lacquer work, and gilt metal ware with a strong Arabic flavour and Islamic characteristics. Also on display is distinctively-shaped Ming-style furniture, magnificent textiles, along with exquisite openwork jade belt plaques, paintings and calligraphies of the "Four Talented Scholars of the Wuzhong Region (Suzhou)", such as the poems autographed by Tang Bohu, and scholars’ objects epitomising the taste of the Ming literati.

A variety of multimedia applications will provide visitors with a unique insight into this golden era, while educational and other supporting activities will also be organised. For details, please visit http://hk.history.museum/en_US/web/mh/exhibition/current.html

The Hong Kong Jockey Club Series is a partnership between the Club’s Charities Trust and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department. Launched in 2012/13 with annual funding of HK$17 million, it supports two to three exhibitions each year. All exhibitions are complemented by educational programmes. Previous exhibitions include Treasures from Tsarskoye Selo, Residence of the Russian Monarchs and Dunhuang – Untold Tales, Untold Riches. Other exhibitions in the 2015 HKJC Series are The Rise of the Celestial Empire – Consolidation and Cultural Exchange during the Han Dynasty and Western Scientific Instruments of the Qing Court, both staged at the Hong Kong Museum of History earlier this year.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club
Founded in 1884, The Hong Kong Jockey Club is a world-class horse racing operator and Hong Kong’s largest community benefactor, as well as one of Asia’s most prestigious membership clubs. Operating as a not-for-profit organisation, the Club allocates its surplus funds for charitable and community projects. In 2014/15, its donations reached a record HK$3.87 billion, and in the last decade alone it supported over 1,300 projects. The Club is also Hong Kong’s largest single taxpayer, contributing a record HK$20.05 billion in 2014/15. With about 70% of its revenue given back to society every year through donations and tax contributions, The Hong Kong Jockey Club delivers a significantly higher return to the community than any other racing and/or sports betting organisation in the world. As a socially responsible organisation, the Club helps Government combat illegal betting and advocates responsible gambling. The Club is also one of Hong Kong’s largest employers with over 24,000 full-time and part-time staff. Committed to global excellence and giving back to society, the Club is always “riding high together for a better future” with the people of Hong Kong.