As the seventh month of the Lunar Calendar is around the corner, August 23^rd marks the “End of Heat” of the 24 solar terms, signaling the shift of weather from heat to cool. It is commonly known as the moment “the Hell Gate opens.” In this season rich in mystical legends, “100 Objects, 100 Stories: Treasures from the National Palace Museum” is in its final countdown for a grand opening at the National Museum of the Czech Republic on September 11. In addition to the classical artifacts like Jadeite Cabbage and Along the River During the Qingming Festival, Qing court version, among other popular treasures, the National Palace Museum (NPM) released a preview of the mystical items in the “Supernatural Beings” section today (20), recounting the stories of artifacts affluent in the folklore imageries of the East.

The NPM points out that ghosts take no form, born purely out of human conception. Such imagination for supernatural mysteries has been shared both by the East and the West alike, bestowing endless creative muse upon literati and painters. Among the Czech folks in the 17^th and 18^th centuries, there were folklores of castle spirits, witches, and vampires, while in the East, there was Strange Tales from a Studio of Leisure, penned by literatus Pu Songling that found no success in politics, which is a collection of tales of mountain deities, specters, fox fairies, flower nymphs, and animal spirits, opening up an infinite space of supernatural imagination for humanity.
 
What are the images of supernatural beings in the imagination of the East? The “Supernatural Beings” in the NPM exhibition in Czech Republic presents the classical tales of supernatural creatures to the European audience via a figurative language of art. The Painted Skin depicts how a man peeks through a window, only to find a ghoul painting a human-skin mask before wearing it to become a breathtaking beauty on the spot. Then, he comes to realize that the beauty he has encountered is actually a transformed ghoul. The story recounts that the man, out of panic, turns to a Taoist priest to hunt down the ghoul, but meets his death with his heart ripped out by the ghoul. Following the instructions of an eremite, the grieving wife swallows mysterious phlegm. She then disgorges a heart that transformed from the phlegm back at home, putting it into her husband’s chest. The man miraculously comes back to life as a result. Such tale with a grotesque plot and twists demonstrates the ancients’ fantasy for human-demon transformation.

Aside from ghosts in literature, there are divine icons that ward off evil and safeguard households. The ancients believed that ghosts can be expelled. Hence, illustrated by the brushes of literati and painters, the “King of Ghosts” that seize and even swallow ghosts thus came to life. Zhong Kui is often portrayed as burly, bearded middle-aged man in a clerical robe, wielding either a sword or a fan, symbolizing the force to expel demons and ward households. The NPM exhibition in Czech Republic is to display Red-on-snowing-white Glass Snuff Bottle with the Zhong Kui Motif. Snowflake-like bubbles can be observed across the translucent white body of this snuff bottle. That is how the “snowing-white” in its name came to be. The body is overlaid with red glass, over which the images of Zhong Kui are carved on either side. On one side, Zhong Kui gazes upon the sky, moving swiftly. On the other, Zhong Kui eyes front, with his sword pointed to the firmament. The motion and stationary present a vivid contrast. Pines, cypresses, bats, and fantastic beasts surround the figures with fine details. Exhibiting a relief effect reminiscent of paper cut-outs, this piece is an artful fusion of legendary imagery with exceptional craftsmanship of the East.

Echoing with “Taiwan Culture in Europe 2025” organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Culture, the National Palace Museum proudly presents “100 Objects, 100 Stories: Treasures from the National Palace Museum” at the National Museum of the Czech Republic from September 11 to December 31. The exhibition features 10 topical sections and 131 artifacts of rarity, along with digital exhibits, showcasing the fascinating stories in the NPM collection. European audiences are invited to relish in person the exclusive charm where eastern supernatural beings and art intertwine.
 

 
 
 
Media Liaison of the National Palace Museum
Emily Wang   +886 2 2881 2021 #68991  Email: emily@npm.gov.tw
Wan-Yu Yang  +886 2 2881 2021 #68900  Email: yuyang@npm.gov.tw