Five times Beijing’s Forbidden City became a trending topic online thanks to Palace Museum’s outgoing director
- Shan Jixiang made the 600-year-old imperial palace one of the most talked about places in China among millennials before his retirement
- He is credited with reviving the museum. Here are five of the museum’s most notable innovations under his leadership
The director of the Palace Museum in Beijing’s Forbidden City, Shan Jixiang, announced his retirement on Monday after seven years of service. The museum houses some of China’s most treasured cultural relics from the Ming and Qing dynasties.
The 64-year-old is considered to have revived the museum and made the 600-year-old imperial palace one of the most talked about places in China among young people.
The number of visitors to the museum hit a record high of 17 million in 2018, with 40 per cent of patrons under the age of 30, according to Chinese newspaper The Beijing News.
Many of the items sold at the museum’s shops and events held at the Forbidden City, have gone viral on the Chinese internet recently. Here are five that got Chinese internet users talking.
1. Lipsticks
The craze for Forbidden City lipsticks started with patterned paper tapes sold at the museum’s souvenir shop and online store. Creative bloggers wrapped the tapes around the base of their Yves Saint Laurent and Dior lipsticks and they instantly went viral online.