THE ARTS
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84 oil-paintings illustrating the China scene in the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. This valuable gift, which was made in accordance with Sir Robert's wishes expressed shortly before his death in 1956, includes a number of paintings attributed to Chinnery and Castiglione. It is hoped that the Collection will be available for exhibition in Hong Kong in the middle of 1958.
The Government also received during 1957 the gift from Mr. Lam Yung Fai of the 'copy' for the first post-war issue of the South China Morning Post, announcing the liberation of the Colony by British Forces in August 1945. This interesting document is now displayed at the entrance to the Council suite in the Central Government Offices.
Another donation announced during the year concerned the Library of the late Sir Robert Kotewall. This collection, which consists of some 4,000 English-language works and another 14,000 in Chinese, was presented by members of the Kotewall family in memory of their father. The books will eventually be housed in the City Hall Library, where the room containing the English section will be known as the Sir Robert Kotewall Room.
A small Chinese cannon, bearing an inscription of the Ming Dynasty dated 1649, was extracted from Kowloon Bay in the course of dredging operations for the new Airport. Set on a granite carriage, the cannon has been mounted permanently in the grounds of the Central Government Offices, appropriately overlooking Battery Path.