A Taste of the Forbidden

It’s difficult to predict what would interest a 12-year-old boy in an exhibition of ancient Chinese imperial treasures. Matt Morrissey liked the emperors’ and empresses’ robes.

“There was a different robe for everything the emperor did,” said Matt, a Chinese history buff and seventh-grader at Canyon Hills Junior High School in Chino Hills.

Matt was among the first in line Sunday at the Bowers Museum for the grand opening of “Secret World of the Forbidden City: Splendors from China’s Imperial Palace.”

The elegant display of art and cultural artifacts from the Qing Dynasty began a seven-month run at the Santa Ana museum Sunday, luring visitors from throughout Southern California to see treasures from the Chinese royal court.

Museum security officials estimated about 400 people had visited the exhibits by noon.

Matt said he learned about the exhibition in January from a teacher and persuaded his parents to bring him on opening day.

“My parents dropped me off and took off. I’m really enjoying this,” he said. “I chose China for my cultural literacy project, and I’m using this exhibition to write my report. This is great for me, because I can do all of my research at one time.”

Although the line of people waiting to buy tickets seemed constant, the galleries were uncrowded and the exhibits could be studied without hurry. Each item’s splendor could be appreciated at length, down to the brass rivets on the warriors and emperors’ ceremonial armor.

Marilyn Hsu, 27, marveled at the intricate pattern of swastikas that were barely visible on the silk cloth that covered Emperor Qianlong’s armor.

Hundreds of rivets were spaced about 1 1/2 inches apart on the armor and between each rivet, hundreds of tiny blue swastikas were embroidered. (The swastika is an ancient mystic symbol used by numerous cultures before the Nazis made it a symbol of hate in the 1930s.) Qianlong ruled from 1736 to 1795.

“My gosh, you’d think that something this perfect must’ve taken a lifetime to make,” said Hsu, of Oakland. “This is a rare opportunity to see a part of Chinese history that is exotic and mysterious. The artwork is simply magnificent.”

Hsu said she and her parents decided to drive to Santa Ana and see the exhibition before she returned to the Bay Area in the evening.

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Across the gallery, a group of people were admiring Emperor Guangxu’s wedding overcoat and struggling to pronounce his name. “It’s ‘Zwangzwa,’ ” said a man who said he was from Taiwan. “He was emperor when my grandfather lived in China.” Guangxu ruled from 1874 to 1907.

This is the Year of the Dragon in the Chinese calendar. The dragon became one of China’s official symbols in the Qing Dynasty and is embroidered on many of the imperial robes and gowns on display.

And for those museum patrons who wished to take a piece of the exposition home, the gift shop offered ancient-looking Chinese and Tibetan replicas of cabinets and trunks for as much $1,625.

The Chinese royal court treasures will be on display until September. Some of the pieces have been seen in Europe. But after five years of negotiations with Chinese officials, museum volunteer Anne Shih succeeded in bringing the exposition to the Bowers and the United States for the first time.

“You forget about the Bowers until something like this comes around,” said Javier Longoria, 32, of Tustin. “Everybody’s interested in China. It’s a country that many Americans still know very little about.”