Ancient and Modern China and South Asia in 10 Objects | British Museum Tour of the Hotung Gallery

Because you've asked for it, we've decided to take our Curators' Tour series into one of the permanent galleries of the British Museum. But it's not just any gallery. The Sir Joseph Hotung Gallery of China and South Asia is a whopping 115 metres long and covers 1.5 million
years of history. In fact this gallery is so large (the longest in the British Museum), it takes 5 curators just to tackle the geography and time periods the gallery covers.
So join curators Ruiliang Liu, Yu-Ping Luk, Wenyuan Xin, Sushma Jansari and Imma Ramos for a highlights tour of the Sir Joseph Hotung Gallery of China and South Asia.
You can find out more about the Sir Joseph Hotung Gallery of China and South Asia here: bit.ly/3vJuHho
00:20 Intro to Hotung Gallery
00:42 Bronze Ding, 13th-11th Century BC
03:54 Wall Painting of 3 Bodhisattvas, 15th Century
08:20 Model of a Horse, 8th Century BC
12:19 Seated Figure of Zhenwu, 15th Century
15:23 Ceramic Sculpture (Peacock) by Caroline Cheng, 2012
19:07 Indus Valley Seal Stones, 2600-1900 BC
21:37 Herakles and Vajrapani, 2nd Century BC and 2nd/3rd Century AD
24:36 Amaravati Drum, 1st Century BC - 3rd Century AD
27:35 Mughal Huqqa Bases, 18th Century AD
30:00 Shadow Puppet Representing Mohandas Gandhi
#BritishMuseumTour #AFewOfOurFavouriteDings #CuratorsTour

[@tss016]

Thank you. I've always made it a point to visit the British Museum whenever I'm in London, and I've seen some of these exhibits, especially the Wall Painting of 3 Bodhisattvas. Now I understand the background and origins better. This is a good tour.

[@soccermom1245]

Narrator's English is EXCELLENT!

[@jonsiepollock2175]

We love these presentations. Will there be a continuation of the restoration of the Egyptian cartonnage? We were so looking forward to seeing that.

[@britishmuseum]

It will be coming back, it's just that the work isn't quite done yet and we're waiting for those final stages before releasing the rest of the series. Thanks for hanging in there.

[@kayenatulamin7609]

Eagerly waiting for this series..

[@searchingforfoodonyoutube2500]

Egypt , greece and mesopotamia the best

[@curiouslywoven9737]

Fantastic presentation. Will definitely make a point of visiting the gallery the next time I get to the museum - so far I’ll need at least a week for the different galleries these presentations have introduced to me.

[@CatastrophicDisease]

What an amazing treasure trove of knowledge. Thank you for these videos.

[@gaslitworldf.melissab2897]

They were generous to their ancestors. That vessel takes up his upper torso. It's stunning. I'd love to have a replica. Love the room's design - as it mimics throne rooms of China, Korea and Japan. The galley shape directs the eye directly ahead - at the throne. Courtiers would sit along and between columns (according to rank, of course). It must have been intimidating and beautiful at once.

[@HistorySkills]

Awesome video. Thanks for doing this. Looking forward to more like this, as I use them in my history teaching.

[@philiphawker2112]

Thank you to all at the British Museum who have made this video tour possible.

[@theholyghost]

Going to take a wild guess and predict you might have to give some of this stuff back.

[@Sean-ml2bu]

WOW just WOW the dress!! WoW. I HAVE NO WORDS

[@lag9735]

One day we will get them back

[@jimwalker5412]

Absolutely brilliant presentation

[@modularsamples]

So, how many of these items were acquired by honest means?

[@sexydirrtymoney]

Absolutely brilliant!

[@amcreative3784]

Yes, I love these presentations. I found Louis use of fractal like patterns fascinating. I had the personal experience of smoking a small amount of herb lmuch like the blue caterpillar in Alice n wonderland in the States.When I returned home I was quite affected by patterns,colour much like Louis cats. Later I realised it was similar to the patterns,colour of the Ayahuasca experience which is how many South American cultures call the plant path and experience the planet underlying the perception of light grids that support the planet. This is what Louis cats remind me of as well as electrical cats. His experience reminds me of Yayoi Kusama' experience of reality. Another artist Fred Smith had a colourful naive form that reflected his mental health expression of art making.

[@TheMarkEH]

A wonderful set of presentations by the curators. They were interesting, informative and entertaining. Well done and thank you for creating and uploading this video.

[@msaditu]

Beautiful presentation of stunning objects. Thank you.

[@internetandlifehacks]

A gallery we want to come back to every time; thanks a lot for such a nice presentation!

[@jimmyzbike]

What an amazing experience to see these items.Thanks for sharing

[@joannietrotter2344]

Excellent content, thank you.

[@lynnblack6493]

Thank you to all. Really enjoyed seeing each and every wonderful artifact!

[@kenc2257]

Really interesting and fascinating! Such beautiful objects--in particular, the wall mural, the butterfly dress sculpture, and the "hybrid" hookah bowls with figurines. Appreciate hearing the perspectives of the several presenters.

[@monalisamartinez2628]

Love your narration! Had me even happier to learn something different 💕

[@callistavan2001]

Very interesting !

[@julesschultz2910]

Many Thanks!

[@yvettemarshallTWN]

Actually splendid.✨ 💕

[@kimsherlock8969]

Thankyou wonderfulness

[@TheZinmo]

One thing about the horse: The saddle is peculiar, it sits very far in the front almost over the front legs. I don't think it is a mistake, the artists obviously knows his horses. Was the riding style different in that place at that time?

[@pinkpanther7030]

Very good I didn't know the existence of this ropy Peruvian language. I can understand why it inspires some contemporary art. Especially Art Povera movement.

[@nathanjames4734]

Fascinating presentation! Thank you.

[@nancyM1313]

Very nice presentation🐲🐉❤

[@spmoran4703]

I love this China has much cultural interest . I love the butterfly robe .

[@fool7491]

In classical time, tripot was symbol of sovereign and grace from king. The number and size of the pot one were allowed to own reflected their social status. When one rebellious vassal tried to usurp the throne, he asked the king's envoy how to make "kingsize" tripots.

[@hanleo6626]

hello，when you return the collections to China?

[@mixeddrinks8100]

Love the explanation and the accents from Yu-Ping Luk, and Imma Ramos. Learned a lot, I would say, probably learned more than actually visiting the museum and just walking by it and going neat, but not really getting the full story.

[@PeterPaul175]

I really wish there was no background music when people are talking. Why on earth would a serious organization like the British Museum treat its scholarship like a TV commercial?

[@bittercephalopod1569]

You gonna give 'em back?

[@phoenixgods1]

i'd visit just for Imma ramos, might asks some questions about sati haha

[@carmensandiego211]

give it back

[@starkiller9897]

Yes that beautiful dress reminds me of the harmony in Tibet and also the Ughars, such wonderful harmony!! 😅😅

[@user-im8qz8fu8t]

Correction: 08:20 Model of a Horse, 8th Century BC　ーー＞08:20 Model of a Horse, 8th Century ACE

[@lebowskiduderino89]

i just ate some brading wampung i got while on vacay in the orient i misread the instructions and ate 12 table spoon fulls instead of the recommended 2, should i be concerned?

[@amethyst4424]

When will these galleries reopen, please?

[@liuray3185]

this coming Friday!

[@britishmuseum]

The galleries have opened as of today. However, for the moment access is ticketed. Tickets are free, but you will need to book in advance. You can book here: www.britishmuseum.org/collection/galleries/china-and-south-asia

[@sveu3pm]

all this precious stuff stolen from china and india should be returned to people of this countires at once

[@twonumber22]

How about a rare coin collection?

[@china_town]

#0:52

[@bazza945]

So an unnamed wabbit was actually the first archaeologist!? Let's name him "Phil", after you should know who?

[@dattad7655]

That's not south Asia that is India .that all resembles to ancient Great India.

[@raihanziyu]

Never seen a thief proudly showcasing their loots before

[@spmoran4703]

Perhaps they were stolen . Maos cultural revolution would have destroyed the artefacts completely. And if the Ghandaran stone carvings had remained in Afghanistan the woman hating Taliban would have made a film about their total destruction.

[@ironguanyin123]

I would like to hear about more Chinese, Southeast Asia, Persia, the Middle East and South America as well of the Pacific islands and other islands. I’m bored with so much Egyptian and European art.

[@kimsherlock8969]

Sad History of opportunistic acquirement . Nonetheless it is still being loved. Still an amazing resource for history of China.

[@Mesozoic_mammal]

Fascinating how many artifacts with so much cultural heritage from all over the world, were kindly gifted to the british museum. Ofcourse all those artifacts were given willingly and transeferred legally and not stolen or pressed out from opressed people in colonies or anthing like that. Otherwise it would be a real shame to put stuff on display that belongs to their home countries.

[@leekahei6154]

Thief, Robber

[@rodanzig]

So Bill Gates is a Bodhisattva ?

[@mooseroochy]

the butterfly lady reading a poem she totally doesn't get herself... just bowing to her overlords?

[@molybdomancer195]

Comment when you speak mandarin

[@ancientindianguru1714]

that cannot be UNICORN. It have curved HORN, it is something else. 20:16

[@phoenixgods1]

the legend of the unicorn comes from that location; the inda culture. so it is a change that happened over the thousands of the years- making the curved horn of the unicorn correct and the straight ones of western predominant culture wrong.

[@latetodagame1892]

Those are not butterflies! Bad joke.😒

[@Cheguevara2.0]

All stolen items. Damn looters

[@spmoran4703]

Yes , they could be stolen . Maos cultural revolution would have destroyed them completely . And the Gandharan sculptures would have been totally destroyed by the woman hating Taliban.

[@anurag24th]

British colonial looters showcasing their treasury of looted items.

[@spmoran4703]

Maybe they were looted . They would have been totally destroyed under Mao cultural revolution and some of the artefacts were sold to interested Westerners by Chinese for example the painting of the 3 bodisatvas. And some of the so called looters were not British. And the Ganharan sculptures would have been totally destroyed by woman hating Taliban.

[@anurag24th]

@@spmoran4703 taliban and mao are fluffy angel compared to british looters and warmongers

[@kubina8730]

@@anurag24th you cannot be serious

[@Birumarekt]

@@spmoran4703 its not just about china they stole acient artifacts form many countries.

[@suzettecalleja3122]

he talks to fast.

[@6Euphoria6]

So shameless 🙄🙄🙄

[@johndelong5574]

Its sad that CCP was compelled to destroy this

[@ancientindianguru1714]

no Portuguese brought tobacco in India. WHY LIE??