Prince Kung’s Palace Museum has rolled out a stamp rally kit comprised of a booklet for collecting stamps, a canvas crossbody bag and a stencil of the Chinese character for blessing (fu).
The booklet will not only carry the stamp impressions on its blank pages, but also function as a fully-fledged illustrative guidebook and map to the museum.
The stencil serves as a prop for photos taken during the stamp tour and as a symbol of good luck the visitors have attained.
The kit is available for pre-sale at the Palace Gate One and the designated location for stamping seals at the exit corridor.
The pre-sale price is 98 yuan (original price 128 yuan).
The complete stamp rally includes 30 stamps collected from three locations within Prince Kung’s Palace Museum:
i. Bookstore in front of the Rear Building
ii. Tuiyibu Studio beside the Grand Theatre
iii. The location for stamping seals at the exit corridor.
Recommended tour for the stamp rally:
Palace Gate One – Yin’an Hall – Baoguang Chamber – Xijin Studio – The Rear Building – Western-style Gate – Solitary Joy Peak – Bat-shaped Pond – “Fu” Character Stele – Rectangular Pond and Pavilion – Verdant Rock – Hall of Blessings – Grand Theatre – Pavilion of Deep Autumn – Duofu Belvedere
Four landmarks at Prince Kung’s Palace Museum:
The Rear Building:
The 183-meter-long Rear Building separates the mansion and the garden. The brick-carved openwork windows on the northern wall are in diverse and unique shapes, and carry auspicious meanings such as “blessings, happiness and abundance”, “prolificacy”, “longevity”, and “wealth”.
The Western-style Gate:
The Western-style Gate combines a Western arched shape, shell motifs, and floral patterns with a traditional Chinese Buddhist pedestal and stone plaque in a harmonious way. It is the best-preserved arched door carved out of a single piece of white marble.
The Grand Theatre:
The Grand Theatre is the only Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) fully-enclosed theater tower that still exists in China. Its interior decoration of wisteria paintings corresponds with the outdoor wisteria trellis, creating a feeling of watching a performance under the trellis.
The Fu-character Stele:
The Fu-character Stele is located inside the Miyun Cave of the Verdant Rock. The Chinese character for blessing (fu) was written by Emperor Kangxi (r. 1662-1722) of the Qing Dynasty with bold strokes and in a distinctive personal idiom. It is hailed as the “Number One fu character under Heaven".
A photo challenge with the Fu-character stencil:
Take photos in the museum at a location you believe is the best place for attaining good luck, using the stencil in the kit as a photo prop. Share the photos on your own Chinese social network channels, for instance, WeChat, Douyin, Xiaohongshu, or Weibo. Send screenshots to the comment area of the article on the official WeChat account of Prince Kung’s Palace Museum (https://mp.weixin.qq.com/s/iAMwUrKhO9fjaWndN7pApw).
Ten lucky participants will be randomly selected to receive a special gift.
The deadline for the photo challenge is May 20, 2023.
