I was in Dallas the weekend of April 2-3 for family reunion and we took at trip to the Dallas Museum of Art for a exhibit of artifacts from the rein of Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799 – emperor 1734-1796). Qianlong is billed as the last great Chinese emperor with his rein running the parallel to the American and French Revolutions and other big events in the West. The Chinese empire reached its peak during his tenure and had a period of peace and prosperity. His grandfather picked him to rule and his father made a proclamation to read only after his death naming Qianlong as his successor, the fourth son in natural birth order. Qianlong himself had 41 wives and many children.
The exhibit is only at the Field Museum in Chicago and Dallas so I felt privileged to be there. Qianlong was a master of many talents: art, poetry, military, and diplomacy. He seemed to get the better of a number of European emissaries and ruled over 250 million people, the largest country at the time. Things went downhill for China after him. The exhibit had many things from the Forbidden City, including a number of thrones and scrolls depicting scenes from the empire. A few were done by European artists who worked in the eastern style.
Hello Billives,
I am from China. Very glad you mention Chinese history here.
Posted by: Adele | April 17, 2005 at 07:58 PM