1860 was destroyed, and the bronze statues of the beast-headed animals that once surprised countless people were also spread overseas. For many years, the Chinese people have never given up on their search for them.
After unremitting efforts, seven beasts have returned to their motherland so far, and the whereabouts of the rest are still unknown. Those antiques that were exquisitely casting and witnessed Chinese civilization were lost in this way, which is very regrettable.
However, what is even more heartbreaking is that we lost more than this twelve beast heads .
and most of the encyclopedia " Yongle Ceremony ", which can be called an encyclopedia, and records the most beautiful forty real scenes of the Old Summer Palace, " Forty Scenery Pictures of the Old Summer Palace" and so on.
The objects that could have become our own treasures of the world are now very few, and a large part of them are even overseas.
And the reason why this result is that our country was once invaded and oppressed, and the one with the most looted property was Japan.
They plunder gold, silver and jewelry in various parts of our country. Their quantity and value are difficult to estimate. What’s even more hateful is that even though Japan surrendered to after the war, the treasures they snatched were not returned one by one.
The weak person who is difficult to protect himself
In the beginning, when full people built with the Iron Cavalry, no one would have thought that in a few hundred years, the Qing Dynasty would be so declining, and being bullied so much that it became an imagination to fight back.
In those years of the Qing Dynasty, many countries came to admire the strength and sent envoys to this Forbidden City from thousands of miles to visit or please.
Countless precious specialties were transported to the capital, and the prosperity of this capital made people envious of them.
This huge imperial city has long become a gathering place for treasures in this world. It is precisely this kind of richness that has made countless people think of going to the capital after being squeezed.
As a Chinese, if you want to succeed and become famous, you will be rich and become one of the famous and wealthy businessmen, there are many ways. But as a Gentile, if you also covet the Forbidden City with gold and silver, it would be not so easy to get a share of the pie.
But some people just don’t want to live in a corner of their own. Just like Japan, it is a tiny island country, but it is driven by interests and does not want to spend too much time and energy to develop themselves, so they want to take some "shortcuts" and step on the shoulders of other countries to get on the shoulders of other countries. They naturally don’t have the courage to try it out, but China, which is not far away from it, has long lost its momentum since experiencing a series of incorrect leadership policies.
just stick to the family business left by our ancestors, squandering, thinking that if you are self-confidence and do not invade other countries, you will be able to achieve long-term stability.
But their decision was exchanged for Eight-Nation Alliance , which was burning, killing, looting, and wars came one after another, which made the rulers who didn't know what worries were panicked, feared, and wanted to resist, but were unwilling to spend money and effort.
They huddled in the Forbidden City and continued to enjoy a luxurious life. It is said that later generations despise Cixi the luxurious life at that time, which is one of the reasons.
The cowardice of the ruler not only cannot protect his own people, but also cannot preserve what originally belonged to him.
Faced with such a situation, many aspiring people could not sit still, from Beiyang Navy to 1898 Reform , which was the resistance made by people at that time in the face of the atrocities of the invaders.
can be weak in the end. From " Nanjing Treaty ", to " Shimonoseki Treaty ", to " Xinchou Treaty ", we are forced to sign unequal treaties again and again, and we are forced to cede land, pay compensation, and open ports.
But these are all on the surface, and some are secretly placed, such as those soldiers who invaded China, led by the Japanese army, some of them secretly transferred the property that originally belonged to us and transported it back to their own country.
and even more, those who rob in person openly. With the robbery in their hands, the people who cherish their lives can give up their treasures.
The value of the treasures that are left outside is immeasurable
that year, after the Sino-Japanese War of 1895 , Japan's wolf ambition finally no longer needs to be hidden. It was also from this time that Japan officially started to think of Chinese cultural relics and treasures.
At first, their behavior was state and official. The reason for saying this is because there was a document called "How to Collect Treasures in the Qing Dynasty during Wartime" that was widely circulated within the Japanese army.
This treasure collection refers not to the collection in Japanese territory, but to the plunder of the Qing Dynasty.
At the same time, they are academic priority, to carry forward the cause of the country and promote the increase in their own assets, and to start a bold move with a planned and organized marginal action. They not only beautified the shameless behavior of
in name, but also did not let go of the organization that carried out such actions. They even named them "Archaeological Society" and "Book and Document Reception Committee".
made all preparations and started the action. Starting from the Old Summer Palace, this 0,000 Gardens , which once belonged to the royal family, not only were cultural relics robbed, but even themselves were no longer complete.
Later, Nanjing fell. Behind the tragic Nanjing Massacre, the entire Nanjing, a cultural area for thousands of years, has lost not only famous calligraphy and paintings, but also many bronzes. The dynasty can be traced back to Shang Dynasty .
is not only taken away or destroyed by public collections, but also many people’s private collections are not spared. Later, there were thousands of cases reported and found that there were empirical evidence, and more than hundreds of thousands of cases at the national level.
Not only Nanjing, but also many cities fell in the war of aggression against China. They were also looted by the Japanese army, including porcelain from the Tang Dynasty , calligraphy and paintings from the Ming Dynasty , objects from the Wei and Jin Dynasties, etc. No matter what period or style it can be taken away, it doesn’t matter.
The remaining ones that cannot be taken away, such as some cave statues were directly destroyed, and such losses are irreparable.
After Japan surrendered, our country was finally able to take a breath and established a loss clearance meeting, which was specifically responsible for counting and investigating the losses of our country in cultural relics and culture during the war.
This time, it took more than a year to register most of the cultural relics and treasures. The secretary had nearly four million calligraphy and paintings, more than ten thousand antiques, and nearly a thousand ruined ancient sites.
Some have clearly recorded when they were lost or looted, but the names of the people who took or even destroyed them were no longer found.
A few years ago, the transaction price of Northern Song was 294 million yuan. Perhaps this is an exception, but not long ago, the transaction price of Ding kiln large bowl of Northern Song Ding kiln was also a high price of more than 20 million yuan.
If the cultural relics we lost back then were measured one by one at the current price, what kind of amazing numbers would be? It would have been beyond people's perception.
The road home with a rough and difficult time
No one else’s things can’t be taken. This is a truth that kindergarten children know. At that time, Japan relied on China’s easy bullying and harvested so many things. After the war, it was the defeated side. It should have returned, but it was not.
This is someone who asks, as victorious countries, how can we not get what we deserve?
In fact, at the end of 1945, my country sent a delegation of more than ten people participating in the removal of cultural relics to Japan. We will negotiate with Japan and negotiate related matters to bring Chinese cultural relics left in Japan back to China as soon as possible.
also sent them to Japan to investigate the whereabouts of Chinese cultural relics on the spot, and handle targeted special matters to gain the upper hand in negotiations.
However, in the years when World War II just ended, Japan did not have the arrogance it used to be, but it was not the one who really enjoyed the right to speak in Japan that it was the Japanese emperor , but the American general MacArthur .
can be sent by the United States to take over Japan, so MacArthur's strength should naturally not be underestimated.
. His years of career as a general have made him act recklessly and unquestionably. He has always been used to being tough. Even if he wants to represent Japan, he still looks arrogant.
Of course, China wants Japan to return cultural relics, it also needs to connect with MacArthur. But this matter was not taken seriously by MacArthur at all, and he had no intention of cooperating.
Even if some of the national treasure-level cultural relics in my country have been discovered in Japanese museums, the evidence is conclusive. When my country proposed to return this batch of national treasures to China, Japan's reply turned out to be absurd to compensate in every way, and to return it to my country with other cultural relics of the same type according to its value.
Not only that, but later facing one strong accusation, Japan even proposed that if you want to ask for items, you must first have clear evidence to show who it is? when? Where? If you take this thing, who can prove it?
This is undoubtedly a struggle. When they burned and killed the strongly without saying anything, why didn't they care about who they belonged to? On whose land are they doing this tyrannical thing?
Although MacArthur did not support Japan's various responses, he did not object to it. Everyone can understand the default meaning.
In fact, these things in the hands of Japanese people mean that they may be transferred to the United States by Japan at any time. After all, Japan at that time, after the attack of the two atomic bombs, , the economy and culture were suddenly lagging behind for decades. If you want to restore your strength back then, you must need financial support.
The cultural relics they took from us can now become bargaining chips for economic support with the United States. The United States and Japan are mutually beneficial and mutually beneficial, so they naturally have to help each other, which will inevitably cause great obstacles to the pursuit of our cultural relics.
When the United States tasted the sweetness in this, it was led by the United States and joined forces with more than 40 countries to sign a peace treaty against Japan, which abolished and revised many of the unequal clauses that Japan had signed against other countries.
includes the return of our territory that Japan once occupied.
In the contract, Ai Mingwen said, "Japan gave up all special rights and interests related to China", which means that Japan gave up the rights they would obtain in many unequal treaties that had signed with China.
But although this contract sounds good for China, China has not participated in the drafting and signing of the contract from beginning to end. We are like an outsider waiting for the result.
At first glance, it seems that Japan has given up a lot and really wants to regret it again. However, when you think about it carefully, the so-called "special rights and interests" do not include all kinds of treasures that Japan once illegally obtained from our country.
and there are many details that have been ignored and not mentioned, but such a contract was signed by more than 40 countries, recognizing its benefits .
This makes it even more difficult for us to pursue cultural relics.
On the other hand, Japan may be forced to pay attention to it, and has returned some cultural relics, calligraphy and paintings. However, in terms of its rareness or integrity, it can be clearly seen that the Japanese have put in it. They have really put some effort into it to select so many less important ones and return them.
will eventually return to its hometown
So many years have passed, and we have never given up on our treasures in the hands of the Japanese and have always had the determination to recover them.
And not all Japanese are greedy. Some Japanese cannot stand the past behavior and have shameless behavior of privately occupying other people's property.
So these people gathered together and organized a promotion meeting for the return of cultural relics in China, hoping to help China return things that belong to China.
Even though their organization is a private parliament, it has played a lot of role in promoting our recovery of cultural relics.
is not only that. Among the people, there are still many patriots who are active in various auction houses, bidding and auctioning in the items related to my country.
Some people love it in their collection, while others really just want to get things that were originally Chinese back to their motherland, including porcelain, bronzes, calligraphy works, and even Buddha heads.
Although we were unable to recover the treasures that originally belonged to us for various reasons, decades have passed, and now countless people are still working hard for it.
Whether it is official or private, everyone has a common goal, which is to enable them to return to the embrace of the motherland as soon as possible. I believe that with everyone's unremitting efforts and persistence, this day will eventually come.
But nowadays, we have not forced all of them to recover the known cultural relics exhibited in some well-known museums. This is the mind of our country's great power.
The cultural relics representing symbols of our country's civilization have been marked as China's source, historical value and meaning clearly introduced, so this cultural relics have its value.
We acquiesced to this way of existence, after all, this is also the best testimony of our true history.
But sometimes we will be very tough when we are illegally lost overseas and traceable. After all, China today is no longer the same as it was before.
has long had a voice in the world that cannot be ignored. It should be China. China will never give in. Whether it is cultural relics or land, no matter what Japan's attitude is, China has remained unchanged from beginning to end.
At the same time, the cultural relics outside are always reminding us that the humiliating history of the past reminds contemporary people to work hard.
