However, as we all know, China suffered a catastrophe in modern times, and many collections in the palace were lost in the war. At present, most of the treasures in the Forbidden City are bought back by the state or donated by patriots. Next, the author will introduce Zhang Boju, a famous patriotic Democrat, who "propped up half of the Forbidden City" with his collection.
Formerly known as Zhang, he was born in a noble family. When he was a child, he was adopted by his father to Zhang, who was then an important uncle. Speaking of Zhang, this is not a nobody. He was born a scholar and was the last governor of Zhili in the Qing Dynasty. After the abdication of the Qing emperor, it is also very important to work under Yuan Shikai.
In addition, Zhang Boju's aunt married Yuan Shikai's brother, so he is still Yuan Shikai's cousin. In this context, Zhang Boju, together with Pu Dong, Yuan and Zhang Xueliang, was once known as one of the "Four Childes of the Republic of China", which showed how high his position was at that time.
Zhang Boju, who is rich in life, has got good educational resources and is very talented since he was a child. He entered a private school at the age of seven and was able to write poems at the age of nine, so he was known as a "child prodigy" at an early age. Later, Zhang Boju entered the cavalry department of Yuan Shikai's Huncheng Model Regiment, and officially entered the army after graduation. He worked under Cao Kun, Wu, Zhang and others.
Such a family background doomed Zhang Boju's future life to be not smooth sailing. If he is willing to take the road paved at home, he may still make great achievements. But Zhang Boju is a very independent person. After entering the officialdom, he gradually got bored, found himself unfit for politics, and even began to hate officialdom.
At the same time, I was very interested in the art field, so I decided to quit the officialdom and live the "wan ku" life I wanted regardless of my family's opposition.
Zhang Boju is undoubtedly a man with artistic talent, and with his rich family background, his artistic path is also very smooth.
He loves Beijing opera, and he is not limited to enjoying it. He studied under Yu Shuyan, a master of Peking Opera, and his own level of Peking Opera was unparalleled at that time. Later, together with Yu Shuyan, Mei Lanfang and others, he organized the "National Drama Club". At the age of 40, he called a group of "famous actors" to provide disaster relief and performed a "Lost in Space", which was an unprecedented success in Starlight Glimmer. However, after the outbreak of War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression, forced by the current situation, Zhang Boju began to write poems.
In fact, Zhang Boju has had a hobby of collecting calligraphy and painting since he was thirty. After Peking Opera was forced to stop, he became more obsessed with famous calligraphy and painting. As mentioned above, he was born in a well-known family with a deep background, and later the Zhang family also set foot in the financial field. These assets are enough for Zhang Boju to satisfy his hobby of collecting.
Zhang Boju's collection is also very rich, which can be said to be masterpieces, including "The First Post of China" and "Reply Post". It is also the treasure of the later town halls of the Forbidden City, and was later selected as the national treasure of the nine major town halls in China; There are Li Bai's Shangjietie, Zhan Ziqian's You Chuntu and other famous calligraphy and paintings and some precious cultural relics.
Of all the collections in Zhang Boju, You Chuntu should be the most expensive. For this painting, he even sold the house where he lived for many years, which is still Li's old house. The value can be seen, but even so, he didn't collect all the money for painting, and finally won the You Chuntu with the guarantee of his friends.
After buying this painting, Zhang Boju became heavily in debt, and his life began to become difficult. Even so, he didn't want to sell his "treasure". Even if he was kidnapped later, he wouldn't let his family collect money by selling his collection. In order to protect the collection, he even sewed "Ping Fu Tie" into the quilt.
But it is such a collector who loves painting and calligraphy, but after the founding of New China, he donated all his beloved collections to the country without hesitation, and resolutely refused the compensation given by the country, only accepting a thin commendation order. 1956, Zhang Boju, who knew that Chairman Mao liked calligraphy, presented the Shangjietie to Chairman Mao to thank him for his contribution to the country. Chairman Mao regarded it as a treasure, but he finally gave it to the Forbidden City, and made it a rule that all gifts received by leaders in the future should be confiscated.
Zhang Boju responded to the call and carefully handed over all his treasures. According to his Congbi Calligraphy and Painting Record, he * * * collected 1 18 calligraphy and painting works, as well as several cultural relics, all of which he once lost everything. When the country was in trouble, he also hid and took care of it carefully. Finally, when he was able to enjoy it at home, he gave it to the country without regret. This indifference and patriotism is really admirable.
There is no doubt about Zhang Boju's contribution to the national cultural heritage, but it is a pity that his good deeds did not bring him stability for the rest of his life. 1958, Zhang Boju was classified as a rightist, but Chen Yi came forward to help and provided him with temporary protection. However, a few years later, Zhang Boju was criticized, deprived of his property and sent to the countryside for labor reform. But because I was too old, I wanted to go back to Beijing and was rejected. However, Zhang Boju and his wife who have returned to Beijing are already "black households". They have no real estate and no job, so they can only live by selling their property and accepting relief from relatives and friends.
Until Chen Yi's death, Zhang Boju thanked Marshal Chen Yi for his help and wanted to attend the memorial service. However, due to his status, he couldn't even go to the memorial service, so he had to send a pair of elegiac couplets written by himself. As it happens, Chairman Mao noticed the elegiac couplet and realized that those who donated national treasures without asking for anything in return were so poor now, so he immediately informed Premier Zhou to resettle the Zhang Boju family. From then on, Mr. and Mrs. Zhang Boju had real jobs before they lived a stable life. 1978, Zhang Boju was rehabilitated and his reputation was restored.
Zhang Boju's death is also very regrettable. 1982 in the first month, Zhang Boju, who came back from a banquet, caught a cold and was sent to Peking University Hospital, but was arranged in a noisy eight-person ward. The family contacted the hospital hoping to get a single ward with a better environment, but was rejected by the hospital on the grounds that the level was not enough.
A few days later, Zhang Boju's condition deteriorated. He got pneumonia and finally died very badly. Your son, who used to have no worries about food and clothing, died like this, which made many people feel very wronged. Someone went to the hospital to condemn the hospital's behavior, but it didn't help.
Although the celebrity has gone, the collection he donated will remain in the Forbidden City forever, and his name and achievements will be engraved in people's hearts forever.