The Concepts Of Western Museum Were Diffused In China In Late Qing Dynasty

The concepts of museum that were diffused into China from the Occident in late Qing Dynasty were the concepts of modern museum. A modern museum is an institution open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits, for purposes of study and education. When humanities and natural sciences had a great development in Europe, when the intellectual movement and social reforms or revolutions happened in Europe, the concepts of modern museum were gradually formed. Modern museum came into being in late 19th century and then became very popular in the Occident.In late Qing Dynasty, the concepts of modern museum were disseminated in China in two ways. One was that the westerners directly spread them by building and managing the museums in China, which have been influencing Chinese museums; another was that Chinese people went abroad to visit the museums and understand the concepts. The process that Chinese people gradually understood the concepts of modern museums was outlined in the thesis through researching plenty of historical materials. In the early 20th century, Chinese people acquired the concepts and put them into practice. The new ideas that this paper got are below. The diffusion of the concepts of modern museums was closely connected with groping for rejuvenation of China and in conjunction with the development of modern Chinese culture, and thus the concepts of modern museum were a part of modern Chinese culture. It was the educational function and public cultural spirit the museums have that made the museum to be accepted and its concepts rapidly diffuse in China. Advocating the fairs was of great benefit to understand the concepts of museum. A combination of western museum and ancient Chinese garden was one of characteristics of Chinese museum.It is of great realistic meanings that how Chinese people in late Qing Dynasty understood the concepts of modern museum. The development of Contemporary museums will take benefits from it.