Taiwanese and Chinese museums sign pact but no deal on mutual loans

Mar 2, 2009, 14:38 GMT

Taipei - Taiwan and China's top museums inked a cooperation pact on Monday, but stopped short of reaching a deal on Taiwan sending its relics - taken from China in 1949 - on exhibition in China.

Under the pact, Beijing's Palace Museum will loan 37 pieces of artifacts to the exhibition on Emperor Yongzheng to be held in Taipei in October.

However, the agreement did not touch on the sensitive subject of holding joint exhibitions, or Taiwan's National Palace Museum loaning relics for exhibition in China.

Taiwan fears China would seize any relics loaned to them from its museums.

When the Chinese Nationalist government lost the Chinese Civil War in 1949, it fled to Taiwan to set up its government-in-exile and brought around 650,000 pieces of art to Taiwan.

China sees Taiwan as its breakaway province and the artifacts held by the Taipei National Palace Museum as 'stolen' from China, although Beijing has stopped talking about recovering them as cross-strait ties have improved.

The eight-point cooperation agreement was signed by the curator of Taiwan's National Palace Museum Chou Kung-hsin and Beijing Palace Museum's curtor Zheng Xinmiao.

Under the agreement, the two museums are to hold a joint seminar on Emperor Yongzheng (1678-1735) in Taipei in November, facilitate exchange visits by staff, exchange publications, and share experience in digital publication and preservation of antiques, the Taiwan National Palace Museum said in a statement.

The deal came on the day China was involved in another row over priceless artefacts, with the Chinese bidder who bought two bronze sculptures at the Paris auction of Yves Saint Laurent now refusing to pay for the items - which China regards as looted art.

   The buyer, Cai Mingchao, a collection adviser for the Chinese National Treasures Fund, said he would not pay the 39.6 million dollars the Qing-dynasty rabbit and rat head fetched.

   The organization works for the return of looted art to China.

   A spokesman of the government's administration office for cultural assets denied any involvement of the government in Cai's bid.