STORY: Late Slovenian collector's dream for a Chinese museum about to come true
SHOOTING TIME: recent footage
DATELINE: Nov. 13, 2023
LENGTH: 00:01:53
LOCATION: Ljubljana
CATEGORY: CULTURE

SHOTLIST:
1. various of Slovene Ethnographic Museum
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): NATASA VAMPELJ SUHADOLNIK, Professor at the Department of Asian Studies of the University of Ljubljana
3. various of the restoration work
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): GUO FUXIANG, Curator of the Court History Department of the Palace Museum

STORYLINE:

A late Slovenian private collector's dream that Slovenia should have a museum of Chinese ethnography is finally about to come true thanks to the joint efforts of experts from both countries.

Slovenian navy officer Ivan Skusek Jr. was keen on collecting Chinese artifacts during his stay in Beijing between 1914 and 1920. 

SOUNDBITE 1 (English): NATASA VAMPELJ SUHADOLNIK, Professor at the Department of Asian Studies of the University of Ljubljana
"He had a vision to build a museum here in Ljubljana, after he returned from China, in the style of Chinese architecture. He also had a huge (collection of) pieces of Chinese furniture. This is very interesting to know that actually Ivan Skusek was one of the first Western collectors who discovered these very beautifully refined lines of Chinese furniture and started to collect."

The Skusek family donated a collection of some 500 Chinese artifacts to the Ethnographic Museum located in central Ljubljana in 1963.

The collection includes a pile of 10,000 wooden pieces in various shapes, which have been confirmed by Chinese experts to be a model of an ancient Chinese gate and some interior architectural decorations.

The Chinese experts were invited to Slovenia and carefully restored the gate model and two groups of interior architectural decorations. 

They also shared with their Slovenian counterparts necessary techniques needed to continue the restoration work. 

SOUNDBITE 2 (Chinese): GUO FUXIANG, Curator of the Court History Department of the Palace Museum
"Through the Chinese artifacts, Slovenian scholars and people can get a deeper understanding of Chinese history, customs, and culture." 

The exhibition of these artifacts is scheduled to open in 2024.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Ljubljana.
(XHTV)