Guided Reading720°VR Exhibits
Spotlight on National Treasures
Gallery: (Northern Branch) Exhibition Area I 208
In accordance with the “Cultural Heritage Preservation Act,” items in the National Palace Museum’s collections are given one of three designations: “National Treasure,” “Significant Historic Artifact,” or “General Historic Artifact.” Although National Treasures can frequently be found on exhibit in the NPM, in order to make it possible for visitors to enjoy them no matter when they come to the museum, one of the NPM’s galleries has been set aside especially for a series entitled “Spotlight on National Treasures.” For this exhibition series, each season one piece of National Treasure-level painting or calligraphy is put on display in the designated gallery.
Of all of the extant works of calligraphy written by the Song dynasty literary giant Su Shi, “Letter to the Head County Magistrate, Gentleman in Service of the Court” is the piece written at the latest point in his life—for this reason it has been referred to as his “swansong.” It is also one of the items in the NPM’s collection with the title “National Treasure.” This type of document is known as a chidu, and is what would now be referred to as a handwritten letter. According to historical research, this letter was written to Su Shi’s good friend, Du Mengjian. What would Su’s mind state have been as he wrote this letter? Where was he? How is the artistry inherent in calligraphy meant to be enjoyed? We hope that by presenting text and images in conjunction, this exhibit will help you gain a broader understanding of who Su Shi was, as well as a deeper appreciation for his art.
Story of an Artistic Style- The Imperial Porcelain with Painted Enamels
Gallery: (Northern Branch) Exhibition Area I 103, 104
The Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana is the library of the popes. Inaugurated in the mid-15th century, it was conceived as an institution "for the common convenience of learned men (pro communi doctorum vivorum commodo)," one "of all manuscripts in both Latin and Greek that is worthy of the dignity of the Pope and the Apostolic See (liborum omnium tum latinorum tum grecorum bibliotecam condecentem pontificis et sedis apostolicae dignitati)." Today, it is arguably one of the largest and most important research libraries in the world. Known for its collections of manuscripts and early printed books, the Bibliotheca's holdings encompass, apart from theological and religious works, a wide array of disciplines, from literature, history and art to law, philosophy and sciences. It is recognized as the "Attic of Civilization" and "Memory of Mankind."
The development of China's imperial libraries of the Ming and Qing dynasties, remarkable for the wealth of their collections, were contemporaneous with that of the Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana. Surpassing all of its predecessors in size of holdings, the Ming court library incorporated the imperial collections of books from the Song and succeeding dynasties, enriched with lost titles acquired by imperial agents dispatched across the land as well as works produced and printed by official organs. The Qing court, inheriting the legacy, continued to expand the scope of the collection on a comprehensive scale. Further boosted by the cultural enterprises of the High Qing and augmented by the output of an active imperial printing bureau, the book collections housed at the palaces and pavilions in the Forbidden City became increasingly richer, thus ushering in an unprecedented period of great prosperity in the annals of China's imperial libraries.
The organization of the dual exhibitions of Treasures from the Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana and Rare Books from the Ming and Qing Imperial Libraries marks the first presentation at the National Palaced Museum of invaluable Western and Chinese antiquarian texts in their respective historical and cultural context. It is intended to help the audiences garner an in-depth understanding of the differences and similarities in the kind of book culture nourished by the Roman Curia and the Chinese imperial courts. The Treasures from the Bibliotheca Apostolica Vaticana is chronologically arranged, and, with an overview of the titles and artifacts that entered the collections in various phases, the viewers are introduced to the history of the Bibliotheca from its founding to the present day. The complementary Rare Books from the Ming and Qing Imperial Libraries, on the other hand, highlights a selection of the finest works collected, compiled and printed by the imperial courts of the two dynsties, through which an account of the development of the Ming and Qing imperial libraries as well as their holdings and characteristics is delivered.
The Chengde Summer Resort: A Microcosm of the Qing Empire
Gallery: (Northern Branch) Exhibition Area I 103, 104
Construction on the Chengde Summer Resort, also known as the Chengde Mountain Resort or the Jehol Summer Palace, began in the 42nd year of the Kangxi reign (1703). The summer resort was both the largest Qing dynasty imperial garden and also the best preserved among existing detached imperial palaces. As the Chinese name Bishu Shanzhuang suggests, the resort is a place where emperors sought refuge from the Beijing summer heat. However, it was much more than just a summer retreat. The Jehol area where the resort was located was originally Mongolian pasturelands and the frontier between the Qing Empire and north Asia. Between the 5th and 9th month of each year, Qing emperors came here for the autumn hunt and to receive Mongolian and Tibetan living buddhas and noblemen as well as foreign envoys. Many key decisions on state affairs were reached at the Chengde Summer Resort, making it an indubitable center of political power in the Qing Empire, second only to the Forbidden City.
With the resort's increasing importance, successive Qing emperors devoted considerable resources to its upkeep. The expansion of the surrounding administrative area, the construction of palaces between Chengde and Beijing, the resort layout and landscaping, the design of the gate towers and pavilions, and the management of the hunting enclosure all reflect the diverse and multi-ethnic character of the Qing empire, which blended the political systems of the Manchus, Mongols, and Chinese, the cultures of the Chinese heartland and frontiers, and Tibetan Buddhism and Chinese religious beliefs. This exhibition is thus divided into the following six sections: The Resort as Microcosm of the Qing Empire, The Ruler's Multiple Identities, Religious Tolerance, Local Administration in the Multi-ethnic Empire, Linguistic Diversity, and Politics and Ritual. By presenting important artifacts and archives from the National Palace Museum collection, they offer an insight into the significance of the Chengde Summer Resort.
It has been noted that the history of the Chengde Summer Resort represents half of the history of the Qing Dynasty. At the height of the Qing Empire, as the emperor and his vast entourage crossed the Great Wall, the Mongolian noble class in the north would send delegations to greet him, with no sign of tension from the battles they had fought. The Qing emperors were meticulous in their development of the northern mountain resort and deliberately set out to woo Mongolian and Tibetan leaders. As a result, the Jehol area thrived and people of various ethnicities visited and settled there, ushering in a panorama reflective of the characteristics of cultural diversity in the Qing Empire.
All That Flourishes Under the Brush: The Late Ming Culturati Wang Shizhen and His Endeavors
Gallery: (Northern Branch) Exhibition Area I 202, 204, 206, 210, 212
Wang Shizhen (1526-1590), an important historian and litterateur of the Ming dynasty, has many works to his name. Also a devoted member of the arts, he took part in almost all of the major cultural realms of his day. Of particular note was the fact that he astutely observed the flourishing of society in the sixteenth century during the later part of the Ming dynasty. This special exhibition examines the fascinating life of Wang Shizhen and his endeavors, offering a glimpse at the cultural efflorescence of the late Ming that bore witness to exceptional creativity and diverse competition in cultural life at the time. And through the eyes and under the brush of Wang Shizhen as a historian, it offers a unique perspective on the cultural underpinnings of this flourishing age.
Wang Shizhen enjoyed success from an early age, becoming a Presented Scholar ("jinshi") at the age of 22 and rising through officialdom until tragedy struck the family when he was 34. At that time, his father Wang Shu (1507-1560) was a prominent official who became ensnared in court factionalism, imprisoned, and then executed. Wang Shizhen thereupon retreated from political circles and spent much of his remaining years in and around his hometown devoted to writing, traveling, friendly gatherings, and appreciating art. With a large collection, he delved into a wide range of arts and cultural connoisseurship, from garden design, painting and calligraphy, rare books, porcelains, and works of tapestry and embroidery to various curios.
Wang Shizhen, who came to dominate literary and cultural circles for twenty years, especially admired Jin and Tang dynasty calligraphy, Song dynasty painting, and Song porcelain, and he advocated visual culture as a testimony to history. He proposed the notion of "Five Transformations in Painting History," in which he clearly identified changes in the period style of Chinese painting. As for the arts and crafts of his day, Wang also had many opinions. He particularly promoted the "Three Masters of Wu" in calligraphy, was able to discern the phenomenon of fake tapestries, and criticized the popularity of Ming official porcelains as a mistake. His views and observations all derived from a keen eye and a willingness to go against popular trends.
In the regional competition of his time, Wang Shizhen was the leader of cultural elites in Suzhou, which was engaged in a fascinating tug of war with more recent upstarts such as Huizhou and Songjiang. With his great literary talent and penetrating historical critique, Wang became admired by many and an acknowledged authority and arbiter of taste in cultural matters. With his designing of gardens, promoting religious beliefs, discovering the painting of actual landscapes, and advocating new-fashioned visual travel diaries, he took the lead in several new cultural movements as well.
Wang Shizhen, feeling that "all between heaven and earth is nothing but history," focused on collecting and collating historical materials, his critical and copious writings forming a foundation for the later compilation of History of the Ming (Ming shi). In addition, his brush as a historian recorded the prospering world around him and, at the same time, avenged the wrongs against his father. Through his comprehensive observations and exhaustive evaluations of developments in various art forms, he was able to document the great cultural achievements of the Ming dynasty for posterity. And through his unique vision as a historian, he further analyzed the historical and cultural undercurrents of this flourishing era in Chinese history.
In recent years, academic research on Wang Shizhen has become increasingly common. It also just so happens that the collection of the National Palace Museum can amply illustrate the man and his endeavors to illustrate, through his natural talent and cultural advantage as well as a macroscopic view as a historian, the numerous opinions he left behind that influenced later generations. As an active leader in many art and cultural activities, Wang Shizhen was thus able to mold and shape the cultural layout of his day.
FOUR LEISURE ACTIVITIES— ARRANGING FLOWERS, BURNING INCENSE, HANGING PAINTINGS, TASTING TEA
Gallery: (Northern Branch) Exhibition Area I 105
Throughout history, individuals who are particular about taste and aesthetic experience will constantly pursue spiritual delights to elevate the mundane of everyday life. People nowadays still enjoy flower arranging, incense burning, painting hanging, and tea tasting. In fact, these long-lasting activities can be traced back over a thousand years.
Extant documents, antiquities, and paintings have shown that Song people of the 12th century gave special attention to the harmony between flowers and the vessels when they arranged flowers. They also made the incense in different recipes to display individuality with exclusive scent. Furthermore, hanging paintings not only served the purpose of decorating the home environments; more importantly, it created an immersive space of elegance. For tea tasting, "whisking tea," diancha, was preferred for large parties while the archaic "boiling tea," jiancha, was chosen to demonstrate a style of drinking alone or with fewer attendances.
This exhibition presents the four subjects of flower, incense, painting, and tea in divided sections. Through the interplay among the artefacts, it aims to reflect people's thoughts and practices on these four activities around the 12th century. We invite everyone to the recreated area in the gallery to experience a world infused with flowers, incense, paintings, and tea from ancient times.
We owe our sincere gratitude to the National Central Library, Museum of Oriental Ceramics, Osaka and Ryoko-in Sanctuary in the Daitoku-ji Temple. The diversity of this exhibition is greatly enriched through their graciousness in lending their precious collections.
Guided Reading720°VR Permanent Exhibit
Compassion and Wisdom: Religious Sculptural Arts
Buddhist sculptures arose out of the belief system that produced them. They are derived from the iconography in Buddhist sutras. Buttressed by the popular religious concepts of the time, they aptly convey the spiritual content in which the religion is rooted. Believers thought that the production of these sculptures would bring about good fortune; practitioners meditated with these images in order to bring about a deeper understanding and wisdom. Religious sermons made use of such profound sculptures to align and intensify the believers' conception of the Buddhist realm.
Among single Buddhist sculptures, one often finds sculptures of the Buddha, Buddhist monks, Bodhisattvas and guardian deities. The Buddha is at the core of the belief and represents the attainment of enlightenment. Disciples rendered in the form of monks transmitted his teachings after his death. Bodhisattvas were made in the image of a secular, royal prince—having reached Buddhahood, they chose to stay in this world in order to assist those who have not. Guardian deities look ferocious, but they avert physical enemies and internal demons. Then there are stupas, representing Nirvana. All these come together to compose the fundamental elements of Buddhist art.
Besides the religious content of Buddhist sculptures, these objects also possess their independent artistic merit. Northern Wei sculptures tend to be modest and simple. T'ang sculptures are often rotund and lively. Starting from the Sung era, sculptures became more closely associated with ordinary people. In addition to revealing the technical development of each period, they also reflect their makers' standards of beauty. Thus, appreciating religious sculpture not only imparts their ideological ideals, but also conveys universal concepts of beauty.
A Garland of Treasures: Masterpieces of Precious Crafts in the Museum Collection
"A Garland of Treasures" is the title given in the Qing dynasty by the Qianlong emperor to a curio box in his collection. As the name suggests, it means a group of small but precious artifacts. The cherished crafts in the collection of the National Palace Museum include enamels, clothing and accessories, studio objects, lacquerware, Buddhist ritual implements, carvings, and curio boxes. Covering a wide range of forms and materials, these artifacts are especially numerous and of high quality, revealing an important facet of the Qing imperial collection. This exhibition is divided into the themes of "precious" and "crafts." "Precious" refers to the treasured materials and exceptional workmanship, while "crafts" indicates the consummate skill that went into the design and production of the classical forms, making it difficult for the viewer to stop admiring these objects.
The collection of precious crafts in the National Palace Museum mostly derives from items used in daily life at the imperial court. Some were ritual objects and others diplomatic gifts. There are accessories that were used for ceremonial purposes, while others formed part of the dress and make-up for those living in the ladies' quarters. Some crafts were displayed in palace halls, served as curios to be appreciated at leisure, or found in the scholar's studio. Others are also rare collectibles stored in chests that were all specially designed and marvelously produced.
The materials used in this eclectic grouping of crafts often include composition combinations, being mainly gold or silver, semi-precious stone, bamboo or wood, ivory or horn, and ink or inkstone. They are also skillfully integrated frequently with bronzes, porcelains, and jades, with many different materials often appearing together. And along with a mixture of different techniques, these objects truly reflect the diverse beauty of Chinese arts and crafts. As for the subjects to decorate them, they often interweave auspicious patterns, folk legends, and historical allusions, being profoundly steeped in the essence of Chinese culture to create a sense of dignity, elegance, and delight in life.
The Magic of Kneaded Clay: Ceramic Collection of the National Palace Museum
Ceramics is a sign of civilization. From processing the clay, shaping the forms, applying the glazes to firing the products in kilns, raw materials go through many changes as soft clay becomes durable ceramic. The forms, glazes and decorative patterns on ceramics are diverse and varied due to their being created under different cultural and social conditions. Emperors, officials, potters and users of ceramics all contributed to the formation of various period styles in China. What is attractive about ceramics is that it echoes and records the long course of history, the network development of kilns also reflecting the phenomenon of cross-cultural interactions that took place over time.
Most ceramics in the National Palace Museum collection were inherited from the Qing imperial court and passed through many places before being moved to Taiwan. Originally from the palaces in Beijing, Rehe and Shenyang, these ceramics possess a distinct accession number that can help trace the original location at which each piece was once stored or displayed. It makes the collection of the National Palace Museum unique and distinct from other public and private museums. Even though the Museum does not have many pre-Song dynasty ceramics, it boasts many famous wares unparalleled anywhere in the world, including renowned Song wares, doucaiporcelains of the Chenghua reign in the Ming dynasty, painted enamel porcelains of the High Qing as well as official wares of various Ming and Qing dynasty reigns.
This exhibition illustrates a history of development in Chinese ceramics based on the collection of the National Palace Museum. From the perspective of various glaze colors, it is possible to see how glazes evolved at different kilns and periods as well as how official models of decoration formed over time. The exhibition is divided into four sections: "Neolithic Age to the Five Dynasties," "Song to Yuan Dynasties," "Ming Dynasty," and "Qing Dynasty". "Neolithic Age to the Five Dynasties" represents a long period of time when ceramics evolved from primitive beginnings to a more sophisticated stage. Using the perspective of daily aesthetics, "Song to Yuan Dynasties" explores the decorations and beauty of various wares from different kilns. The "Ming Dynasty" section theme narrates the establishment of the Jingdezhen imperial kilns, as porcelain production became a state affair and local civilian kilns competed for market share. The "Qing Dynasty" section shows how three emperors, Kangxi, Yongzheng, and Qianlong, personally gave orders for the imperial kilns, the influence of official models reaching a peak at that time. As the dynasty began to decline, the styles of folk art began to creep into late Qing imperial wares.
Ceramics is testimony to the realm of human activities. Apart from allowing visitors to grasp an idea of how Chinese ceramics developed, it is also hoped that the exhibition will generate more interaction and feedback so that this historical collection can continue to inspire new ideas.
Splendors of Qing Furniture
Furniture is an art form combining both aesthetic with pragmatic qualities. Like the features of one's face, once the location and features of the eyes and mouth have been established, a whole range of beauty, expression, and emotion becomes possible within a limited space.
The development of Chinese furniture reached its apex approximately between the 15th and 17th centuries. At that time, carpenters used such hardwoods as "tzu-t'an" (red sandalwood) and "huang-hua-li" (rosewood) because of their firm texture and fine grain. Taking into consideration the taste of scholars, craftsmen designed forms and structures that emulated the graceful contours of calligraphic strokes. Hence, so-called "Ming-style furniture" gradually emerged with a simple yet elegantly succinct style along with a sense of strong charm in its graceful beauty. In the 18th century, following an upsurge in demand for furniture by the court, imperial taste increasingly drove the style of furniture to become somewhat more dignified and majestic, even luxurious and opulent in presentation. Apart from incorporating some elements of Western aesthetics, relatively more emphasis was placed on meticulous decoration, as craftsmen fully utilized clever techniques of carving, inlay, painting, and appliqué to produce the desired results.
The collection of the National Palace Museum includes a set of red sandalwood furniture originating principally from the imperial residence of Prince Kung. Red sandalwood has always been valued for its hardness and density. Though not as brilliant or beautiful as rosewood in terms of color, red sandalwood nonetheless imparts a sense of serenity and stability. Though these pieces of furniture derive from the same source, they were not originally from the same set, the styles actually ranging from the 17th to 19th centuries. However, much attuned to the modern taste of mixing and matching styles together, this exhibition is an attempt to construct two complementary sets of furniture arrangement: one for the more active setting of a living room and the other for the quietude of the scholar's studio. Consulting scenes of Ch'ing dynasty life depicted in imperial paintings, various pieces of painting and calligraphy, curios, and display objects have been included here to provide a more accurate reconstruction of a room at the time. With these objects, whose original meaning may be obscured by placing them in isolation behind glass walls in display cases, we can rediscover their original setting within the simulated time and place seen here.
A Gathering of Treasures in the National Palace Museum North and South
This VR exhibition will take turns exhibiting the following artifacts: Jadeite Cabbage (Qing dynasty), Meat-shaped Stone (Qing dynasty), Gold Chalice of Eternal Stability (Qing dynasty), Jade Candlestick of Constant Harmony (Qing dynasty), Jade Brush Pot with Bokchoy Cabbage Garden Decoration (Qing dynasty), Bronze bear-shaped zun vessel(Han dynasty), and Jade Candlestick of Jade bear-shaped zun vessel (Qing dynasty). Currently, Jadeite Cabbage and Meat-shaped Stone are being displayed.
Rituals Cast in Brilliance: Masterpieces of Bronzes in the Museum Collection
The Bronze Age of China started in the late Xia dynasty (c. early 17th B.C.E.), lasting about 1,500 years through several dynasties from Shang to Western Zhou and Eastern Zhou. Even after the subsequent emergence of iron in Qin and Han dynasties, bronzes continued to be in use.
During those remote eras, only the ruling class was allowed to commission and use the precious bronze vessels. As was said, "worship and warfare are the first and foremost affairs of a state". Bronze was mainly cast into ritual objects, in addition to weaponry, to offer sacrifices to ancestors for their blessing of an everlasting lineage. Further, from the arrangement and quantity of bronzes displayed in a given ceremony, one can discern the specific social status and position of that noble host. Bronzes were thus the most important ritual objects in the aristocratic Shang and Zhou (1600-220 B.C.E.).
In many aspects, these two early dynasties were crucial to the formation of Chinese culture. Politically, with a burgeoning humanistic awareness the rule by theocracy gradually transitioned to that of rituals and proprieties. Materially, the advanced bronze smelting and casting skills initiated a new age of ritual vessels and weaponry; the breakthrough in craftsmanship and technologies gave rise to a wide range of flourishing industries. Spiritually, the two primary affairs of the state, worship and warfare, conveyed via various shapes and patterns of ritual bronzes the awe for and communion with deities as well as ancestors. Last but not least, the bronze inscriptions recorded the ritual occasions these vessels were made for: feast rites, military action, and reward or conferment ceremonies.
The Bronze Civilization, extolled with the "Rites and Music" of bells and cauldrons, in the "Worship and Warfare" honoring ancestors, and by Zhou's "Newly Endowed Mandate" and "Elaborate Textual Repertoire", continued on through the renewed splendors during Eastern Zhou, all the way to the ultimate unification under Qin and Han. Bronzes gradually yielded its central role in the ritual system but transformed into a cultural archetype, deeply imbued into and manifesting the essence of Chinese thought and culture: extensive and elaborate, profound yet moderate.
Art in Quest of Heaven and Truth: Masterpieces of Jades in the Museum Collection
Jade, cool and hard to touch, yet gracefully beautiful and tenderly warm to look at, is the most constant element that withstands time and a culturally rich object that more than anything else holds the deep feeling and profound thinking of the Chinese people.
As far back as over seven thousand years ago, our forebears had learned from the toil of life such as digging and logging that "jade" was a stone of beauty and eternity. With a glistening sheen just like the springtime sunshine, believed to be high in jinqi (vital force or energy), this beautiful jade was fashioned after the concept of yin and yang into round bi discs and square cong tubes, and marked with deistic and ancestral images as well as "encoded" symbols. A power of "affinity" born of "artifacts imitating nature", so they hoped, would enable dialogues with the Supreme God, who imparted life through mythical divine creatures and thus created humans. Out of this early animistic belief, came the unique Dragon-and-Phoenix culture of China.
Humanism arrived with passage of time and social development. Gradually dissociated from animistic properties, jade ornaments in the shape of dragon, phoenix, tiger, or eagle, originally symbolic of a clan-family's spiritual gift, or innate virtue, took on new interpretations as Confucian gentlemen's virtues: benevolence, rectitude, wisdom, courage, and integrity.
During the Six Dynasties and the Sui-Tang era consecutive waves of foreign influences arrived and impacted the Chinese jade art significantly. Free from either spiritual or Confucian undertones of jade, newly formed literati class in Song and Yuan dynasties was keen on both nature and humans; their art was in quest of verisimilitude and ultimately truth. Along with realism, however, archaism existed in support of political orthodoxy, popularizing antiquarian styles for jades. Jade carving exemplified the quintessence of Song and Yuan culture Arts and crafts developed into an age of sophistication in Ming and Qing dynasties. Starting in mid-Ming, the region south of the Yangzi River enjoyed great economic prosperity; jade carvings became ever finer and more elegant under the patronage of literati and rich merchants. In the 2nd half of the 18th century, the conquest of the West Territory further gave the Qing court direct access to and control of the Khotan nephrite mines; jadeite also started to come in from Myanmar with the active development by Qin in the southwestern region. Driven by the imperial house's taste, jade carving experienced an unprecedented thriving period.
Throughout the nearly eight-millennium development, jade carvings have first embodied the Chinese ethic of religion that was in awe of heaven and in reverence of ancestors. Then art in pursuit of verisimilitude in both form and spirit peaked after the medieval China, manifesting the academic heritage of Chinese scholars in seeking the intrinsic nature of things. The two concepts jointly attest to our national character as well as the deepest and most profound connotation of the ancient Chinese jades, the art in quest of heaven and truth.
Guided Reading720°VR Locations
Zhishan Garden
The Zhishan Garden, covering an area of 1.88 hectares, is based on traditional Chinese garden building techniques, and is filled with a literary atmosphere. It reflects the garden styles of the Sung and Ming dynasties. Some describe the Chinese garden as a euphemistic poem or a long unfolding landscape painting. After enjoying the treasures of the National Palace Museum, we invite you to relax in this Acadia of the ancient literati.
Huabiao Avenue
Visitors arriving at the Shanxia Square of the National Palace Museum will see the Huabiao Avenue, a magnificent boulevard featuring an imposing archway inscribed with the words "tien-hsia-wei-kung" (meaning "a public and common spirit ruled all under the sky"); giant, guard-like bronze lions on two sides; towering ornamental columns on two sides; and a gigantic square ding (ancient Chinese cauldron) along the central trail, making the Huabiao Avenue the perfect picture-taking location!
Exhibition Area I (Main Building) 1F
Located at the center of the hall is the entrance to the exhibition galleries, with ticket offices available on two sides. On the right side of the hall is the Xian-ju-fu Café and an item storage area; visitors must store their backpacks, travel packs, and luggage in said storage area prior to entering the exhibition galleries. The storage area also offers free wheelchair and stroller rentals. Xian-ju-fu Café sells coffee, tea, cakes, and other light snacks, providing a place for the public to dine and relax. On the left side of the hall is the audio tour service desk, which offers daily guided tours and audio touring system rentals. The carefully planned tour services and products make the museum-visiting experience remarkably rewarding for visitors!
Exhibition Area I (Main Building) B1
Exhibition Area I is the main pick-up and drop-off area for buses and tour buses and the location for purchasing National Palace Museum tickets and group audio tour services. On the left side of the entrance is the Children's Gallery, an art education space designed for children and students between the ages of 5–12; here, they can interact with their parents and learn. Said gallery uses interactive display-based physical and multimedia devices to enable schoolchildren to learn more about the National Palace Museum's artifacts (through observations, thinking, hands-on and experience-oriented activities, and games) and discover the connections between ancient artifacts and modern life. On the right side of the entrance is the B1 museum bookstore, which sells books, artifact replicas, and exquisite cultural and creative merchandise. Also available in Exhibition Area I is a post office, providing services such as mailing and cash withdrawals.