Collector's generosity gives porcelain lovers rare historical treat

Part of Chen Guozhen's collection is on display at the Palace Museum in Beijing to show visitors how Yue kiln celadon developed and its role in the beginnings of Chinese porcelain. [Photo by Wang Kaihao/China Daily]

More than 30 years ago, Chen Guozhen, 68, an entrepreneur and private collector from Yuyao, in Zhejiang province, started to collect porcelain made at the Yue kiln, an ancient production hub in his hometown.

But never could he have imagined that his collection－now one of the country's biggest private reserves of such cultural relics－would one day be displayed at China's top museum.

A part of Chen's collection, which includes more than 7,000 articles, is now on display at the Palace Museum in Beijing to show visitors how Yue kiln celadon developed and its role in the origin of Chinese porcelain.

The show, which opened last week, is titled Moon Shines over the Autumn River: The Celadon Collected and Donated by Chen Guozhen.

The show has 153 sets of celadon on display, and 19 of them have been donated to the Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, by Chen. His main collection has been on display at the East Zhejiang Yue Kiln Celadon Museum, which he set up in 2006.

"I've almost thrown away all I've earned to celadon," Chen says, giving his reason for sharing his collection with the public.

"Many people enter the collection circuit to invest and thus follow fads. However, if you want to be a successful collector, individual pain should give way to the inheritance of tradition. We're only temporary custodians of these treasures, which belong to history," he says.