Power & Glory, a major loan exhibition in collaboration with The Palace Museum (Forbidden City) in Beijing, the Nanjing Municipal Museum, and the Shanghai Museum, features Some of the most precious artworks from the Ming ynasty (1368–1644) along with items from this period owned by the Asian Art Museum. Many of the more than 240 artworks — porcelain, paintings, textiles, lacquer, jade, jewelry, architectural elements, and more — are on public view for the first time.
Ming – which means “bright” in Chinese – was an appropriate name for a dynasty whose 276 years of rule were marked by stability, economic strength, and a dramatic flourishing of the arts. The first capital of the Ming dynasty was in Nanjing. The third Ming emperor (the Yongle emperor, reigned 1403-24)) transferred the capital to Beijing, and under the Ming dynasty the Forbidden City in Beijing became an international landmark. By the end of the dynasty, Beijing supported a population of more than one million people. The Forbidden City along with the outlying region that supported it made Beijing “a service and supply center that was undoubtedly the largest of its kind in the world at that time” according to the late Chinese historian Ray Huang.
As China’s last native-ruled dynasty, the Ming dynasty is revered as a pinnacle of cultural achievement. Imperially supervised workshops and kilns followed strict guidelines for the creation of goods for royal consumption.
Power & Glory is divided into seven themes related to different aspects of Ming court life: government and ranks; entertainment and hobbies; daily life; architecture and court environments; technology and innovation; religion and beliefs; and education and tradition.
Asian Art Museum Web Site
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