Southeast Asian Chinese's Cross-Cultural Traditions at National Museum

Posted on 6th Feb 2015 by mohit kumar

New Delhi, Feb 5 (IANS) A slice of cross-cultural traditions of the Peranakan Chinese in Singapore and the surrounding region will be on display at the National Museum from Feb 10, organisers said Thursday.

The Peranakan Chinese are descendants of southern Chinese traders who settled in Southeast Asia and married local women. Their culture is rooted in Chinese traditions, but with strong influences from Southeast Asia and Europe.

The two-month-long exhibition"The Peranakan World: Cross-Cultural Art of Singapore and the Straits of Malacca" will showcase an assortment of art objects including gold and diamond jewellery, belt buckles, porcelain, furniture and beadwork.

Singaporean president Tony Tan Keng Yam will inaugurate the exhibition which will run until March 25.

"This is the first time that an exhibition on the Peranakan Chinese culture is being held in India. The objects at the exhibition, most of them dating from the late 19th and early 20th centuries, have been lent by Asian Civilisations Museum and The Peranakan Museum in Singapore," National Museum director general Venu Vasudevan said in a statement.

Peranakan art in this exhibition reflects these diverse influences and highlight how Chinese, Malay, Indian and European cultures were fused into a distinctive style.

David Henkel, curator for the exhibition, said: "A major component of the exhibition will be Peranakan jewellery. For Peranakans, jewellery is an important cultural marker, a treasured heirloom, and an indicator of social standing and family wealth. As in other cultures, it is often part of a bride's dowry."

A gold belt buckle, a kerosang (made of gold and diamonds), a cotton altar cloth bearing dragon motifs and inscriptions, portraits for ancestor veneration, and a flower basket wedding bed hanging are among the other art objects that will travel to India for the first time.

The exhibition will also showcase the Chinese porcelain specially made for Peranakan patrons. Peranakan porcelain, called "nyonyawarea, is characterised by vivid, contrasting colours.

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