Zhejiang University presented A Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings to the University of Tokyo at the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, Tokyo, Japan, on July 30.

Jin Xiaoming, deputy director of the Ancient Chinese Calligraphy and Painting Research Center at Zhejiang University, presented the books to Nakajima Takahiro, director of the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia at the University of Tokyo.

A Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings. Photo providede to ZICC.

Nakajima expressed gratitude to Zhejiang University for the generous gift in his speech. He pointed out that the institute is an international platform for the study of Asian culture, and the research on ancient Chinese painting is an important part of it. He hoped that scholars could gain a sense of beauty through the project and achieve more fruitful research results.

Jin said that the initial stages of the collection project were built upon the pioneering efforts of predecessors. It underscored the significant support from Japanese cultural institutions and experts in image acquisition and compilation. He said that the two universities would foster long-term and in-depth collaborative research.

After the ceremony, guests toured the library's collection of Chinese art research books and the shelves dedicated to the Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings. Scholars engaged in a discussion, exploring the recent utilization of the Collection and the study and documentation of painting history.

The presenting ceremony of  A Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings. Photo providede to ZICC.

The Comprehensive Collection of Ancient Chinese Paintings, a project initiated by Zhejiang University and Zhejiang Provincial Administration of Cultural Heritage in 2005, is the world's most comprehensive collection of pictures of paintings in ancient China. It covers a sum of 12,405 pieces of Chinese paintings on paper, silk (including brocade and damask), linen and other materials from 263 museums and other cultural institutions at home and abroad.

Established in 1941, the Institute for Advanced Studies on Asia, the University of Tokyo, is an affiliated research institution dedicated to the comprehensive study of East Asian cultures. Its academic studies on society, culture, history, archaeology, literature and art play a pivotal role in the overseas dissemination of Asian studies.

Reporter Cheng Dengyu