RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1982 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/mk61z420p Chinese University's History Department and editor of our 1981 Journal, spoke on Saikung district during World War II: the district being a regular escape route for prisoners of war from Kowloon. After a summer break we began again in October with Professor Shih Hsio-yen, Head of Department of Fine Arts at Hong Kong University, talking on recent Chinese archeological finds and how the Chinese on the mainland look at their origins. In December Dr. James Hayes led a tour of the New Territories, which included Sam Tung Uk village built in the eighteenth century and scheduled as a museum and cultural centre, and Tsuen Wan, with a vegetarian lunch at the Yuen Yuen Hok Yuen, Tsuen Wan, a temple complex belonging to a Chinese syncretic religious group. Also in December, Professor Rulan Chao Pian, Professor of East Asian Languages and Civilizations and of Music at Harvard, and currently visiting Professor of Music at the Chinese University, spoke on traditional forms of dance narrative in North China. Her talk was illustrated with video tape material. Finally, in January Dr. Graham Johnson, Associate Professor in Sociology at the University of British Columbia, talked on the Chinese in Canada, discussing their history from the early rural migrants who worked in the goldfields and on the railway, to the more sophisticated urban migrants going to Canada after 1967, many from Hong Kong. There was very poor response to the two overseas tours offered through, or by, the Society during the year. The tour to India had to be cancelled through lack of sufficient numbers, and the tour of the Pearl River Delta consisted of six persons only, including the leader, Dr. Michael Lau, to whom I express my thanks. This year about seven members will be joining a tour arranged by Dr. Brian Shaw for late March-early April. The group will witness the annual sacred masked dance festival at Paro in Bhutan and also visit other places in Bhutan, and Darjeeling and Kalimpong. Other tours may be arranged by Dr. Shaw during the coming year, and Mrs. Craig will also be offering tours to members, who will be kept informed. As the year progressed we found it increasingly difficult to obtain bookings at the Volunteer Officers' Mess due to heavy ix ================================================================================ RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1987 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/rx919b522 June 24 July 15 Prof. Alan Griffiths "Victorian Flower Power' Mr. Phillip Bruce "The Bogue Forts' September 29 Dr. Elizabeth Sinn 'Kowloon Walled City' (repeat) October 17 Rev. Carl Smith "History of the Wanchai District' October 28 Mr. Mitya New 'Expatriates in Pre-Revolutionary China' November 27 Dr. Betty Wei Peh-T'i 'Shanghai: Crucible of Modern China' February 8 Ms. Veronica Pearson 'Health and Welfare in Modern China' February 27 Prof. Jean Chesneaux 'China in the eyes of French intellectuals' Local tours were made to the following places of interest: Wanchai and the Ruttonjee Sanitorium (7 November, led by Rev. Carl Smith and Dr. Elizabeth Sinn), Stonecutters Island (3 December, led by Phillip Bruce), the Hong Kong Bank Picture Collection (18 December, led by Mrs. Anita Wilson), Tai Po and Island House (9 January, led by Dr. Patrick Hase) and Sam Tung Uk Museum and Tin Hau Temple in Tsuen Wan (10 February, led by Dr. James Hayes). Tours outside Hong Kong included two visits to Shekou, Humen and the Bogue Forts on 18/19 and 25/26 July organised and led by Phillip Bruce, and an eight-day visit to the Yangtse River Gorges starting 29 August led by Dr. Michael Lau. You will, I am sure, agree that these activities have given a great deal of pleasure to members of the Society. Our thanks and appre- viii ================================================================================ RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1990 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/d79206299 30 26 festivals in the New Territories. Besides Faure's 1986 book The Structure of Chinese Rural Society which touched on the festival, printed work by local scholars arising from these studies is yet to appear. 27 Two museums, first the History Museum of Hong Kong, and later the Sam Tung Uk Regional Council Museum, have taken photos and videos of the festivals since 1983, following Mr. Hugh Gibb's film of the Ha Tsuen Jiao, taken in 1974. However, only the Jiao festival in Cheung Chau and the 1985 Kam Tin festival have been fully recorded. These are not as yet available in print. Following the sad deaths of Prof. Ward and Dr. Lu, the 1980s also saw the quick decline in interest in Jiao festivals in Hong Kong. This is, perhaps, due to two not completely unrelated reasons: firstly, Jiao festivals in Hong Kong are studied only for their contribution towards the understanding of rural society. Therefore, when a researcher changes his interest to societies of another locality, study of Jiao festivals in Hong Kong becomes irrelevant. Another reason perhaps is a matter of "time". Whether it is a diachronic or synchronic study, or even an independent ethnographical report, the physical demands of observing a Jiao are often considerable. Planning for a Jiao festival may take one whole year, starting from fixing the date and selection of representative worshippers to the final purification of the community and households rituals. Moreover, if one intends to observe Jiao festivals held at different times, a long term commitment and interest is necessary since many Jiao festivals in the New Territories are celebrated only once in ten years. A comprehensive study of Jiao festivals cannot be done by a short term survey. During my visits to two Jiao celebrations in 1990 (Lam Tsuen and Fanling), the only other researchers I met were a scholar from the Music department of the CUHK, and some members of an amateur research group. b. Sources 24 +4 - Schipper noted that [Jiao festival] simply was ignored in the writings of the bureaucracy, and remained an immensely important factor in the lives of the common people ....29 Studies of Jiao festivals in Hong Kong have so far depended heavily on ethnography ================================================================================ RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-1994 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/zk522640g 159 The Museum of History is also planning a museum of coastal defence of the Hong Kong region, to be built at the site of the former Lei Yue Mun fort, The Regional Council runs three historical museums. The first was the Sam Tung Uk Museum, housed in a restored Hakka walled village built in 1786. It was opened in 1987 as a folk museum specializing in the history of Hong Kong's rural areas. The Railway Museum is centred on an old railway station, and the Sheung Yiu Folk Museum is housed in an old fortified Hakka village. Together, the museums are the main venues where ordinary citizens, not to mention tourists, can learn about Hong Kong's past. Clearly it is not just exhibits that make a museum. Research is indispensable to provide support for any exhibition. The steady expansion of museums in the last decade had entailed much research input both by the museum staff and by commissioned researchers. The Museum of History, for example, in preparing for the opening of the museum of coastal defence, is busy sourcing for military items such as medals, guns, uniforms and so forth. At the same time, it is also conducting a full-scale two-year oral history project interviewing both civilians and military personnel on the Japanese invasion and the occupation period, to support the effort. Antiquities and Monuments Office 10 Another centre of local history research is the Antiquities and Monuments Office. Founded in 1976 initially to conduct archaeological work and conserve historical monuments, its work has become more diversified in the last few years. Through exhibitions, guided tours, publications, local studies and community involvement projects, it has helped to spread the message of heritage conservation. But, as in the case of the museums, its work cannot be done without research, and it is now also commissioning researchers to back up its routine work and special projects. Together, through publication, activities and exhibitions, the publicizing of local history by the museums and the AMO is being carried out with increasing efficiency and on a growing scale. All these activities, however, have placed great demands on those working on local history. ================================================================================ RASHKB Journal 皇家亞洲學會香港分會學刊 | RAS-2001 https://digitalrepository.lib.hku.hk/catalog/zg651950g Appendix Date Visits 2001 Sat April 28th: Sam Tung Uk Museum and Hoi Pa led by Valery Garrett Sat 26th May: Mount Davis and Pinewood Batteries led by Tim Ko. Sat 18th Aug: Preview of Hong Kong Museum of History led by Dr Joseph Ting. Sat 15th Sept: Tour of the new Central Library in Causeway Bay led by Julia Chan and Dr Pat Hase (two visits) Sat Sept 22nd: Private View - Chinese Textiles given by Valery Garrett and Chris Hall. Fri Sept 28th to Wed Oct 3rd: Korean Palaces in Seoul led by Dr Pat Hase. 2002 Sat 10th Nov: Visit to Dolphins led by Lindsay Porter. 8-19th Feb 2002: Bhutan, led by Dr Brian Shaw. Sat Feb 23rd: Guided tour of the Cultural Relics of the Great Wall Exhibition at the HKMH led by Dr Joseph Ting xxviii ================================================================================