Collection Pop Up: Rare East Asian

This Collection Pop Up: Rare East Asian will feature three books on culture and art related to people who originated from Northeast Asia, including an illustrated catalogue on the tombs and mural paintings of the Korean Goguryeo Kingdom (31 BC - 668 AD) and two photographed studies by Japanese archaeologists from around the1930s.

One of these focuses on Buddhist sculptures and architecture from 11th -12th century in Northeast Asia, the other on the buildings and decorations in the burial complex of the second emperor of the Qing empire (1644-1911). Colour plates and photographs in these books preserve the rare records of these precious sites and objects, some of them inaccessible today.

The Rare East Asian Collection holds over 20,000 items ranging from the 17th to the 21st century, on topics such as history, literature, fine arts, traditional medicine, religion, linguistics, education, gender studies, politics, architecture, craft and design. It consists of books, scrolls, realia, stone rubbings, and ephemera, and is home to four major collections: The Harry Simon Collection, The Thomas Chong Collection, The R.F. Price Collection, and The Valery Garrett Collection.

This free public program forms part of our Collection Pop Up series. You can find upcoming Collection Pop Up events on our What's On page.