In order to revitalize and inherit the excellent traditional craftsmanship and ritual culture of China, promote academic research on Ming and Qing bronze ware, and enrich the supply of public cultural services, the "Five Directions - Collection of Ming and Qing Bronze Ware" special exhibition will be officially launched at the Hai'an Museum on May 28, 2026. The opening ceremony of the exhibition and the promotion of the new book "Five Directions - Bronze Works of Ming and Qing Dynasties" will be held at 3 pm on the 29th.

Exhibition Introduction

Ji Jin Zhu Shi Nian Hao Zong

Copper has been a vital tool and strategic asset for the country since ancient times. Each dynasty has strict regulations and control over the mining, smelting, and production of copper materials. The copper craftsmanship of the Ming and Qing dynasties reached a mature stage, with elegant and exquisite shapes and profound cultural connotations. Among them, the copper objects with year names and inscriptions are particularly rare due to the scarcity of copper materials and strict casting and smelting control in ancient times.

This type of bronze ware with era and style markings is not only an important standard for conducting chronological research on artifacts, studying palace casting paradigms, and analyzing the aesthetic evolution of historical crafts in the cultural and museum fields, but also a core physical evidence for sorting out the cultural context of the Ming and Qing dynasties and studying the inheritance trajectory of traditional metal smelting and casting techniques. It carries high historical value, cultural relic value, and academic research value.

Nearly 70 exquisite pieces present the lineage of Ming and Qing Dynasty copper works

The exhibition selects nearly 70 exquisite copper pieces passed down from the Ming and Qing dynasties, with the Ming and Qing Xuande furnaces as the core thread, covering fine artifacts from the early to mid Ming dynasties, including palace ceremonial vessels, elegant stationery, and display utensils. The exhibition consists of two main sections: "Collection of Ming and Qing Dynasty Bronze Artifacts" and "Bronze Works with Year Names and Styles". It combines universal appreciation with professional academic research, presenting a comprehensive overview of the development of Ming and Qing copper casting techniques, craftsmanship, and aesthetic evolution.

The collection system of this exhibition is complete and the inheritance is orderly. Many objects have authoritative publishing records and public museum exhibition history, including official artifacts from the Yongle, Chenghua, Zhengde, Chongzhen, Yongzheng, Qianlong and other era names of the Ming Dynasty, as well as multiple bronze artifacts from famous private collections of literary houses, including various ancient techniques such as gold plating, gilding, silver wire embedding, and coloring. It focuses on showcasing the official casting standards of the Ming and Qing Dynasties and the aesthetic preferences of literati and officials in collecting and playing with bronze artifacts, intuitively interpreting the technological characteristics and chronological rules of bronze artifacts throughout history.

Supporting monograph promotion conference

The book "Five Directions - Copper Works in the Ming and Qing Dynasties" is edited by Zhu Haiyan and published by the Palace Museum Press. It focuses on the identification, dating, and craftsmanship research of Ming and Qing bronze ware, with "authenticity, precision, and rarity" as the core criteria. Based on a large number of physical details and cross-border comparisons with palace standard utensils, it systematically sorts out the identification system of Ming and Qing bronze ware. This book is an important academic and practical monograph in the field of Xuande Furnace and Ming and Qing Dynasty bronze ware collection, which can provide useful references for cultural and museum research, industry collection, and cultural popularization.

Exhibition Information

This exhibition is open to the public for free, and we sincerely invite you to come and visit!

Exhibition Period

May 28th to July 22nd, 2026

Exhibition Venue

First floor exhibition hall of Hai'an Museum

Opening ceremony and book promotion time

May 29, 2026 15:00