Jottings from the Granite Studio

This is a long-promised and oft-postponed Asian History Carnival. Mea culpa, I have been remiss and remorseful, but in my defense it’s a crazy time here in Beijing. My friends and I are already getting in shape for the Olympic Games by participating in a few warm-up events including The Hong Kong Visa Run and the ever popular Landlord (Rent) High Jump. Also, since this is a long delayed carnival, I’m making it extra long and splitting it into two sections. Check back on Thursday for Part II.

On to the things carnivalesque…

I love meta-publishing, so this carnival begins by linking to Frog in a Well where Professor Jonathan Dresner blogs on author Simon Winchester’s latest book which looks at the questions historian Joseph Needham asked about Chinese scholars who once dabbled in science.  Whew.

Also in the spirit of great summer reads…imperial history buffs will want to check out Geramie Barmé’s latest book The Forbidden City. Jeffrey Wasserstrom offers his review over at The China Beat.

As happens every year: a certain anniversary in early June. (Sorry for being coy, but I’m blogging from behind the GFW, and the last time I posted on a certain subject that begins with “T” and rhymes with “Schmiananmen” I couldn’t get on my site for a week.)  Commemorations, memorials, and other essays and thoughts can be found here, here, here, here, here, here, here, and here.

In architectural news, Prince Charles has weighed in on the ongoing controversy over urban renewal and the plight of Beijing’s historic neighborhoods. Funny thing though, the Crown didn’t seem quite as concerned with ‘historic preservation’ 140 years ago when British troops were burning down the Old Summer Palace, but I digress…word from the hutong is that the old neighborhoods keep coming down, even as their replacements face delays going up.

Speaking of palaces, the original home of the Qing emperors is getting a much-needed facelift, over 90% of the Shenyang Imperial Palace—the second largest surviving imperial residence in China—will be renovated. The palace was first constructed in 1625.

As most people know, Sichuan was rocked by a devastating earthquake this past May. While the human tragedy has been enormous, the outpouring of donations and voluntarism was something to see. On a historical note, archaeologists have been working to preserve several historic buildings in the affected area including the Qiqushan Temple in Mianyang.

Not that’s been all bad news out of China this spring (curse those Fuwas!), the Olympic Torch finally made it back to friendlier lands in May, and the residents of Mao Zedong’s hometown turned out to show their Olympic spirit. No word yet from the State Council on my idea to replace the droll portrait of the helmsman which currently presides over Tiananmen Square with an Olympic-themed version featuring the Chairman in a toga with a laurel wreath. Now THAT would signal a changing China…

On a more serious note, at Frog in a Well, Alan Baumler ponders the origins of origin stories while K.M. Lawson gives us a three-part post on Small Sea Travel Diaries: Yu Yonghe’s Records of Taiwan.

Pinyin News blogs about tattoos in Chinese history and links to an article (pdf) by Carrie E. Reed and the use of tattoos as part of the Chinese penal code down through history.

Good news for scholars and researchers in the western United States, this past March, The University of California, Berkeley opened the new four-story C.V. Starr Library, billed as “the first freestanding building ever constructed to house an East Asian collection in the United States,” according to library director Peter Zhou.

It appears with the recent economic shocks around the world, money is very much on the minds of historians as well. First was a group of intellectuals who wanted to shake things up by adding figures from China’s cultural and artistic past to the country’s currency. I’m down with that. Who wouldn’t want to pay their bar tab with Li Bai embossed 20-yuan notes? Frog in a Well jumped on board with great post showing how currency designers in recent history have tended to favor political figures. And from The Opposite End of China, Michael Manning posts a photo of Xinjiang currency circa 1941. Now this week comes word that Mao has been booted off of the newest 10 RMB notes to make way for the Olympic Stadium.

Much bally-hoo over Jonathan Spence and this year’s BBC Reith Lecture Series, with The China Beat providing the reviews for all four lectures.

With the surge of Chinese patriotism around the world this spring and summer, the question inevitable arises over what it means to “be Chinese.” I ask my students at the beginning of each semester to ‘define China’ and it’s not an easy task. The Taipei Times takes a crack at this question (one with particular significance for Taiwan) and the always fascinating Blogging for China raises the topic sparking a lengthy, heated, and interesting debate in their comments section.

On the subject of nationalism, Singapore Senior Minister Emeritus Lee Kuan-yew weighed in with his thoughts on history and national self-confidence in Forbes Magazine last month. Unsurprisingly, this provoked a reaction from some Chinese bloggers. (English translation can be found here.)

Finally, while there are a few cringe-worthy moments, worth checking out is a long piece by Francesco Sisci in La Stampa on change and Chinese history.

More tomorrow….