Exhibition marks 130 years of Taipei City history

2014-08-12

A special show on the history of Taipei City kicked off Aug. 8 in two venues as part of celebrations marking the city’s 130th anniversary.

“The exhibition provides an excellent opportunity for visitors to better understand how Taipei grew from a small town of 50,000 to a metropolis with a diversified culture and population of more than 2.7 million,” Taipei Mayor Hau Lung-bin said at a news conference promoting the event.

“By tracking this development over the past century, the show can also help chart a better course for the city going forward.”

Organized by the Taipei City Archives, the historical display comprises more than 100 artifacts, manuscripts, old maps and photographs. It is being staged at Shuxin Hall and the former air force headquarters gymnasium through Sept. 30.

The first section of the display takes visitors on a journey back in time to the city’s establishment in the late Qing dynasty (1644-1911). Highlights include the construction of the city walls with five gates in 1884, their demolition during the Japanese colonial rule (1895-1945), as well as personal stories of those who contributed to the city’s development.

The show at the gym focuses on how Taipei emerged from World War II to become a metropolis. Visitors can relive some of the most important events, such as the surrender of Japan in 1945, relocation of the Nationalist Government from Nanjing to Taipei four years later, and the upgrade of the city into a municipality in 1967.

According to the organizer, other anniversary events, which are set to run through year-end, include artistic and cultural performances, celebrations themed on bringing the West Gate back to life, screenings of four documentaries and history-focused seminars aimed at raising awareness of the city’s designation as 2016 World Design Capital.

Source: Taiwan Today (http://taiwantoday.tw/ct.asp?xItem=220500&CtNode=413)