The National Palace Museum

Page 4 of 6, dVINE Blues, March 1999

The dragon in Chinese Art

The National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan includes art representing 5,000 years of China.
The Museum granted Lee & Lee Communications the sole license to produce a Treasure the Treasures Series which brings these incredible works of art to the world. The Series includes:
A Treasure-house of Chinese Art, A City of Cathay, The Dragon in Chinese Art, Gems of China's Cultural Relics, The National Palace Museum Experience, and Glories of Chinese Calligraphy.
This evaluation is about The Dragon in Chinese Art, Volume3,
which began distribution in late summer,1998.

I have been a fan of the dragon for many years and was quite excited to learn about the Dragon in Chinese Art CD-ROM. To me and to
many Westerners, the dragon is a fire breathing symbol of the Emperor. However, to the Chinese, the dragon is associated with rainfall (not fire) and the Emperor. The dragon graces plates, bowls, cups, tea pots, miscellaneous containers, water vessels, vases, pictures, plaques, mirrors, paperweights, bells, robes, combs,
building columns and numerous other things.

A modern day use of the dragon and other works of art from the National Palace Museumis business cards. The employees of
Lee & Lee Communications have different Chinese works of art on
their business cards. Thet are gorgeous cards.

The Dragon in Chinese Art package contains a 31 page Guidebook which is a work of art. It contains three sections (Dragons in
Chinese Folklore, A Dragon Family Tree and Operation Manual).
Throughout the Guidebook are pictures of some of the priceless dragon art pieces in the National Palace Museum collection.

When you begin the Dragon in Chinese Art CD-ROM, you are greeted with a severn minute audio Introduction to the ddragon. You nca listen to the entire introduction(which will repeat) or click on Antiquities, Dragon Types, Chronology, Back, or Exit on the dragon pillar on the left side of the screen The audio Introduction describes how the dragon is ubiquitoous in Chinese art and society. Perhaps you have had the opportunity to experience the dragon dance, the Chinese new year celebration or other ceremonies featuring the dragon. The Introduction states that Bruce Lee's
(the martial arts expert) Chinese name is Little Dragon Lee.

When you open the Antiquities, Dragon, or Chronology section you are greeted with music by
Tsai Shen Music Productions, The music plays in the background as you move the mouse over
the objects and get info. The sections are interlinked so moving around the program is quite easy. Some objects contain descriptive text and others contain a video. You can jump between
categories by clicking on the icon in the wave area at the bottom of the screen. In each of these sections use the magnifying glass icon to enlarge an object of interest. If you move the mouse
to the edge of the screen, it will automatically scroll horizontally or vertically.

Click on Antiquities and you find a fan shape with a choice of nine categories (Costume,
Lacquer, Carvings, Jades, Enamels, Studio Accessories, Paintings, Porcelain, or Bronze).

There are 126 dragon decor exhibits in the section which rage from the Neolithic Age to the middle/late Ch'ing Dynasty. For example, click on Costume and you see several objects
(cap, Belt, hairpins, perfume pouch). Click on one of the hairpins and read the descriptive
textof the dragons and gems on the hairpin. Magnify the hairpin to better see the detail.
Click on Dragon and you see a globe depicting the ten Chinese dragon categories
(K'uei, coiled, interlaced, striding, cloud, serpent, seated, ascending, rampant, and the dragon fish).
The difference in the dragons might be the number of talons, the position of the head or tail, or many other things. As youmove the mouse over each dragon, the name of that type of dragon appears. You can learn about he dragon's evolution, growth in popularity, how it became associated with the Emperor, and more in this section. For example, click on the seated dragon and it is magnified.
A video program describes how it became the symbol of the Empleror and that only the Emperor could adorn his clothes, throne, bed, etc. with the dragon. The seated dragon is also referred to
as the imperial dragon or the orthodox dragon.

Click on Chronology and a vessel depiction chronological periods appears from 1600 BC-1900 AC. There are fourteen chronological periods represented in this section. Click on the Shang Dynasty (1600-1100 BC) and you learn that the K'uei dragon was popular at this time. The legend is that
the K'uei was a man eating beast with a single horn. Click on another object on the screen.
For example, P'an with a coiled dragon decor and learn that this vessel was used to receive
the water from washing hands before sacrifices.