TOPIC

History

History
The latest news, analysis and opinion on History. In-depth analysis, industry insights and expert opinion.
The Palace of Culture and Science in Warsaw at night. Once seen as a symbol of communist oppression, the “Stalin syringe” is now home to museums and cinemas, among other things. Photo: Shutterstock
Tourism

How a tragic past lies below Warsaw’s chic and modern exterior

The Polish capital’s rich and often tragic history is seen in places like the Palace of Culture and Science and the Polin Museum.

Lessons from China's history

Reflections | What is the Three Letters and Six Rites, ancient Chinese wedding custom?

Art

Japan’s Hidden Christians fight to protect religion as ‘huge loss’ looms

Editor's Letter

This week in PostMag: tile art, translation and a marathon star

See how Hong Kong history is written in the walls, get inspired by a trailblazing ultra-marathon queen, or go wild in Yellowstone National Park.

Tiling Error VI: Ogres Flounder (2024), by Adrian Wong, from the exhibition “With Love from Hong Kong”, at Oil Street Art Space in Hong Kong, on the cover of this week’s print issue. Photo: Darren Chau
On Our Radar

Take a magic carpet ride at the Hong Kong Palace Museum

The wonders of imperial carpets and Islamic arts in all their tufted splendour are making their way to Hong Kong.

European travel

Think Innsbruck is all about skiing? Then think again

From royalty to jewellery and serious cuisine, there’s more to the historically rich Austrian ski town than its popular runs.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Art

London museum where you can touch ‘5,000 years of creativity’

From ancient Egyptian shoes to a curtain Picasso designed, London’s V&A East Storehouse offers ‘close interactions’ with 250,000 objects.

A tunic worn by Elton John at London’s V&A East Storehouse. Photo: AP
From our archives

When a family of five died tragically in a murder-suicide in 1999

Parents take their children’s lives amid financial strain and leave community in Tin Shui Wai reeling by the devastating act.

South Korea

South Korea’s ties with Japan face new test after ex-forced labourer wins suit

A 107-year-old South Korean has won his case against Mitsubishi after a court ordered the firm to pay him compensation for his labour.

videocam
Chinese culture

Language Matters | What to know about intangible cultural heritage amid Hong Kong celebrations

With Hong Kong Intangible Cultural Heritage Month in full flow, a look at ICH’s five main domains and the importance of linguistic heritage.

The annual Mid-Autumn Festival fire dragon dance is performed in Tai Hang, Hong Kong on September 16, 2024. The fire dragon dance is listed on the Representative List of the ICH of Hong Kong, under social practices, rituals and festive events. Photo: Dickson Lee
Hong Kong society

Chinese legends, Disney characters compete in Hong Kong dragon boat races

Paddlers don dazzling array of colourful costumes for final day of Hong Kong’s International Dragon Boat Races.

Some paddlers dressed up as popular Chinese legends Wukong and Ne Zha for the event. Photo: Eugene Lee
Chinese culture

Why China’s leaders seek a culture that is both modern and distinctly Chinese

Historian Wang Gungwu on China’s quest for a unifying national ethos, fusing global insights with heritage to ensure stability in a changing world.

13
Lessons from China's history

Reflections | Oxen, sheep or pigs? Ancient Chinese rules on animal sacrifices

Muslims celebrate Eid al-Adha this weekend, which involves ritual animal sacrifice, something Chinese started performing in the Zhou dynasty.

Old Hong Kong

Then & Now | How Hong Kong became a souvenir hunter’s paradise

Long a magnet for tourists, the vast choice of ‘oriental’ curios on sale at visitor hotspots across Hong Kong have been a feature of the city since its urban beginnings.

American tourists Mr and Mrs Murray Poston browse the goods on offer at an antique store in Upper Lascar Row in 1976. Photo: SCMP Archives
Thailand

Thailand and Cambodia face rising tensions over Emerald Triangle dispute

Thailand warned of military action against Cambodia amid nationalist protests and diplomatic efforts to ease the border crisis.

Thai police officers stand guard in front of the Cambodian embassy in Bangkok on Friday. Photo: Reuters
China-Philippines relations

Opinion | With 50 years of history, Manila and Beijing should do better diplomacy

Stop allowing South China Sea spat to poison the waters when there are in fact many areas of potential cooperation for mutual benefit.

videocam
6
Japan

South Korea’s Lee pledges warmer ties, but past tensions leave Japan ‘worried’

A minor bilateral misstep or the need to push a nationalist agenda could see ties spiral to the lows of 2019, analysts warn.

videocam
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Indonesia

Then & Now | When Indonesia was the Hongkonger’s summer destination of choice

Where did well-heeled Hongkongers escape the summer heat in the years preceding mass tourism?

A postcard from 1904 shows Hotel van Horck near Garut, Java, Indonesia. Photo: Getty Images
Germany

WWII bombs defused in German city’s biggest post-war evacuation

Over 20,000 people evacuated from central Cologne after bombs were uncovered during roadwork.

Food and Drinks

Explainer | What’s in a Chinese olive? The history behind the congee ingredient

Chinese olives are not a local variant of what you put in your martini. One Hongkonger recalls her first encounter with the umami-rich fruit.

India

Indian ‘history hunter’ shows children how to use 20th-century tech

Typewriters, rotary telephones, lanterns and tube radios are among the collection of artefacts Aditya Vij demonstrates at his New Delhi home.

Indian collector Aditya Vij with some of his old radios. Photo: AP
High Jewellery

Chanel’s Reach for the Stars high jewellery launch in Kyoto

For its latest launch, Chanel unveils pieces featuring comets and wings as motifs; the debut in Kyoto is also a nod to the house’s collaboration with local lacquer artisan Yoshio Okada.

The Wings of Chanel necklace is made of white gold, platinum and natural polished diamonds, and features a statement Padparadscha sapphire. Photo: Handout
Japan

‘Lies into truth’: outcry in Japan over Chinese bias at Canadian history museum

With exhibits on Unit 731 and wartime atrocities, critics in Tokyo warn the museum is eroding Japan’s ‘credibility and national dignity’.

14
Sex and relationships

200-year-old condom made from sheep’s appendix goes on display

Prophylactic on show in Amsterdam’s Rijksmuseum bears the phrase ‘This is my choice’ and an erotic image of a nun and three clergymen.

Books and literature

Review | Chinese tenacity in US amid a century of hate explored in new book

Michael Luo’s Strangers in the Land tells heart-wrenching stories of exclusion, racism and violence directed at Chinese immigrants to the US.

The cover of Michael Luo’s book. Photo: Doubleday via AP
Style Edit

Style Edit: The new Santos de Cartier Petit Modèle timepiece

Over the years, the Santos de Cartier has been worn by everyone from pilots to the character Gordon Gekko in the 1987 film Wall Street: its latest incarnation recognises that small is beautiful.

Today’s Santos de Cartier watches follow in the footsteps of the 1904 original – the first watch designed to be worn on the wrist. Photo: Handout
Thailand

How a family’s vision is transforming Bangkok’s historic Chinatown

A transformation is turning the area into a destination for locals and visitors, showcasing rich heritage and striking modernity.

From our archives

When a wall collapsed on people at a bus stop near a school, killing 6

Tragedy struck in June 1966 as a woman and 5 children were crushed by a wall near a school that collapsed on Hong Kong’s Boundary Street.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Help preserve 120 years of quality journalism.
SUPPORT NOW
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement