National Palace Museum
One of the finest collections of Chinese imperial art, with jade, bronzes and paintings.
The National Palace Museum stands at the foot of the hills in Shilin District, on the northern edge of Taipei. Its main building, designed by the architect Huang Baoyu, was constructed between 1964 and 1965 and opened to the public on 12 November 1965. Built in a Chinese palace style with pale walls and green-tiled roofs, it is approached along a broad ceremonial avenue and a flight of terraces rising from the entrance archway on Zhishan Road.
The museum holds close to 700,000 objects, much of it derived from the former imperial collections of the Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Its holdings include bronzes, jades, ceramics, lacquerware, calligraphy, paintings, rare books and archival documents. Because many works on paper and silk are fragile, displays of painting and calligraphy are rotated regularly, so the selection on view changes through the year alongside long-running thematic galleries.
The main building has been extended several times since the 1960s and underwent an extensive modernisation that was completed in 2007. The grounds include Zhishan Garden, a classical Chinese garden opened in 1985, and Zhide Garden, while the nearby former residence of the painter Chang Dai-chien can be visited by reservation. A Southern Branch of the museum opened in Chiayi County in 2015, presenting Asian art and culture.
Highlights
- Palace-style main building with green-tiled roofs, opened in 1965
- Close to 700,000 objects spanning bronzes, jades, ceramics, painting and calligraphy
- Rotating displays of fragile painting and calligraphy from the collection
- Zhishan Garden, a classical Chinese garden beside the museum
- Children's Gallery on the basement level of Exhibition Hall I
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