-Beijing Antique Art Market Tour-

Beijing is one of the cradles of human civilization, a world-famous historical and cultural city, one of the six ancient capitals in China, and the political and cultural center of the whole country, with rich historical and cultural remains and numerous antiquities. Collection Art magazine plans to edit and publish a guide to Taiwan Province antique folk art market, and the editor-in-chief Mr. Zheng Gongxian invited me to write an article on the current situation and development potential of Beijing antique cultural relics market. I think this is a good thing. It can be a "guide" for Chinese descendants and world friends who love Chinese cultural relics and arts to buy antique folk arts in Beijing, and contribute to saving time and energy for everyone. It is also the affection that our Chinese descendants should do. My wife Hou Zongyan (former deputy director of National Cultural Heritage Administration office) and I spent half a month visiting Qu Delong, deputy director of the Diaspora Cultural Relics Department of Beijing Cultural Relics Bureau, and inspected the antique art market, cultural relics shops and auction companies all over Beijing. Of course, during the inspection, I not only accumulated information, but also learned a lot of new knowledge and broadened my horizons. It is even more encouraged by the flourishing situation of the antique market in Beijing.

◆ The famous Liulichang Cultural Street

Liulichang is located outside Heping Gate, Xuanwu District, Beijing. It has two east and west streets, with a total length of two kilometers. The Liulichang has a long history. The Liao Dynasty was Haiwang Village, JD.COM. The Liulichang was built here in the Yuan Dynasty, and a factory was set up here to make glazed tiles during the Yongle period of Ming Dynasty, hence the name. In the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, antiques and booksellers operated here, and many scholars and painters came here to write and paint books and purchase ancient cultural relics. During the reign of Emperor Qianlong of Qing Dynasty, scholars and scholars gathered in Jinghua, and shops such as ancient book rubbings and Four Treasures of the Study in Liulichang flourished. "Books fill the building, treasures add to the street", and the book industry was the most important. This is closely related to the compilation of Si Ku Quan Shu and the academic prosperity in Qing Dynasty. Since then, it has been famous for its cultural street. Celebrity calligraphers such as He Shaoji, Weng Tonghe, Lu Runxiang, Kang Youwei, Liang Qichao, Shen Yinmo, etc., have inscribed plaques for cultural shops. During the Republic of China, due to the addition of South Xinhua Street, Liulichang was divided into two streets, the east street was dominated by antiques, and the west street was dominated by used books. The Commercial Press, Zhonghua Bookstore and Youzheng Bookstore, which specializes in publishing calligraphy and painting of inscriptions, have all set up branches here.

after liberation in p>1949, after public-private partnership and socialist transformation, although the shops were merged, they still retained their traditional characteristics. The houses of Liulichang were damaged by the Tangshan earthquake in 1976. In order to maintain the tradition and characteristics of Liulichang Cultural Street, the government allocated a huge sum of money to rebuild Liulichang Cultural Street in three years. Since then, the old look of the sparse glass factory has taken on a new look, with antique buildings row upon row, bookshops and antique shops stretching across the factory street in the east and west. Such as Rong Baozhai, Bao Guzhai (ancient calligraphy and painting), Moyuan Pavilion (modern calligraphy and painting), Qingyun Hall (ancient inscriptions), Jigu Pavilion (antique pottery), Cuizhenzhai (Jinshi porcelain pottery), Hu Kaiwen (Huimo), Dai Yuexuan (lake pen), Yidege (ink), China Bookstore (rare books of ancient books), etc. Contemporary calligraphers also inscribed plaques for shops such as Cuiwenge, Yueyatang, Yifangzhai, Zhennange, Yunyuzhai and Huaiyin Mountain House, which made them simple and elegant and full of artistic conception. After the reform and opening-up, Liulichang has been listed as an important tourist attraction, attracting tourists from all over the world in Beijing. Visiting the Forbidden City, climbing the Great Wall and visiting Liulichang are also regarded as three must-see places. With the prosperity of the antique market, Rongxing Art Gallery Antique City, Haiwangcun Antique City, Beijing Hanhai Art Auction Company, Beijing Rongbao Art Auction Co., Ltd., China Post Dadi Stamp Auction Co., Ltd. and Beijing Haiwangcun Ancient Books Auction Co., Ltd. have appeared here, making Liulichang Cultural Street achieve unprecedented prosperity and glory.

◆ State-owned enterprises are still the main channel of the antique market

During the planned economy period, cultural relics commodities were exclusively operated by cultural relics shops led by the cultural relics administrative department of the government. For decades, business talents engaged in cultural relics business activities have concentrated under the doors of state-owned cultural relics shops, and folk cultural relics handed down from generation to generation have also been purchased into the warehouses of cultural relics shops. After the reform and opening up, although self-employed individuals have emerged, state-owned enterprises still have unparalleled advantages in terms of business scale, commodity quality, talent team and reliable reputation, and still play the role of the main channel of the antique market. Especially for the cultural relics and artworks before 1949, the state stipulates that mainly the Beijing Cultural Relics Company has the right to operate, followed by Rong Baozhai for painting and calligraphy, and Four Treasures of the Study and China bookstores for antique books.

Beijing Cultural Relics Company, which is the largest cultural relics company in China, was composed of dozens of individual antique shops through public-private partnership in 1951s, with sales offices all over Liulichang, Xidan, Di 'anmen and other areas. The company's headquarters is located at No.64 Liulichang East Street, which belongs to Beijing Municipal Bureau of Cultural Relics. As a public institution, the company's main task is to collect and protect the cultural relics handed down from ancient times in society through commercial means, provide collections and materials for museums and scientific research units, and supply some general cultural relics to domestic and foreign markets in a planned and selective way to meet the needs of cultural relics lovers. The company has more than 311 employees, a large appraisal team, abundant goods in stock and high reputation at home and abroad. Their retail outlets selling cultural relics to overseas customers are all approved by National Cultural Heritage Administration, and they have special invoices of the Fifth General Assembly. The goods they operate are all appraised by the Cultural Relics Export Appraisal Institute of Beijing Cultural Relics Bureau, and they are stamped with wax seals. When customers carry them for export, the customs will release them with wax seals and large invoices.

The salesrooms distributed in Liulichang are: Cuizhenzhai, located at No.17 Liulichang West Street, which mainly deals in stone porcelain and pottery, and has special invoices and wax seals for customs clearance at the time of export; Qingyuntang, located at No.21 Liulichang West Street, is the only cultural relic store in China that deals in inscriptions of past dynasties. It also sells Four Treasures of the Study such as stamps, inkstones, brushes, rice paper, etc., and has special invoices of the Fifth National Congress and wax seals for customs clearance at the time of export; Beijing Ancient Coin Store, located on the 21th floor of Liulichang West Street, is the only store in China that specializes in dealing in ancient coins and coin replicas approved by government departments. Hongguangge, located at No.61 Liulichang East Street, is the only specialized store (also known as a domestic store) in China that sells cultural relics with a long history to mainland customers. Its cultural relics include painted pottery of Neolithic Age, bronzes of Shang and Zhou Dynasties, pottery of Tang Dynasty in Han and Tang Dynasties, and porcelain calligraphy and painting of Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. Baoguzhai, located at No.63 Liulichang East Street, specializes in calligraphy and painting, fabric embroidery in past dynasties, and has special invoices and wax seals for customs clearance at the time of export; Dunhuazhai, located at No.66 Liulichang East Street, specializes in furniture, carpets, miscellaneous items, etc., and has special invoices and wax seals issued by the customs at the time of export; Zhennange Pavilion, located at No.71 Liulichang East Street, mainly deals in stone, enamel and jewelry, and is equipped with special invoices and wax seals for customs clearance at the time of export; Yueyatang, located at No.91 Liulichang East Street. It is the only shop in China that can handle the export of cultural relics with special permission for overseas tourists. The cultural relics with special permission include those from Xia, Shang, Zhou, Spring and Autumn, Warring States, Qin, Han, Three Kingdoms, Jin, Southern and Northern Dynasties, Sui, Tang, Five Dynasties, Ten Kingdoms, Song, Yuan, Ming and Qing Dynasties. Each cultural relic has been appraised by the National Cultural Relics Appraisal Committee, with a certificate of special permission to export cultural relics, which indicates that Yunyuzhai, located at No.96 Liulichang East Street, mainly deals in porcelain after 61 years of Qing Qianlong (1795), and has special invoices of the Fifth National Congress and wax seals for customs clearance at the time of export; Moyuan Pavilion, located at No.118, Liulichang East Street, mainly deals in modern calligraphy and painting, artworks, replicas of cultural relics, etc., because their calligraphy and painting sources are all from the hands of the painter himself, which is highly reliable.

Rong Baozhai. Located at No.19, Shulichang West Street, this is an old-fashioned company with a history of more than 211 years. Now it is a state-owned enterprise with more than 311 employees, which is affiliated to the State Press and Publication Administration. The traditional business is collecting and selling stone calligraphy and painting, Four Treasures of the Study and antiques, self-made wood watermark, painting and calligraphy decoration, uncovering and mounting, etc. The paintings and calligraphy they manage are from the hands of the painter himself and are highly reliable. Xuan paper is directly supplied by Jingxian Hongxing Paper Factory in Xuancheng District, Anhui Province, with the highest quality. Its brush comes directly from Huzhou, Zhejiang Province, ink from Huizhou, Anhui Province, inkstone from Duanxi, Gaoyao, Guangdong Province, Shexian County, Anhui Province, ink from Yidege, Beijing, and pigment from the pigment factory attached to the Central Academy of Arts and Crafts. The quality is first-class in China, so it can be said that it is genuine, and it is welcomed and trusted by painters, artists and art lovers at home and abroad. Rong Baozhai has a branch in Seibu Department Store in Tokyo, Japan, which deals in calligraphy and painting of pen, ink, paper, inkstone, Four Treasures of the Study and China, and does not regularly hold roving exhibitions all over Japan. Some old paintings, seals, inkstones and other Four Treasures of the Study handled by Rong Baozhai are also sold to overseas customers with the approval of the national cultural relics administration department, and have been appraised by the Cultural Relics Appraisal Institute of the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Cultural Relics, with special invoices of the Fifth National Congress and wax seals released by the customs at the time of export.

China Bookstore. This is the largest bookstore in Beijing that deals in new and old books on literature, history, fine arts and art, and it is also the only bookstore in the city that collects and sells old books, which belongs to Beijing Press and Publication Bureau. Bookstore Corporation is located at the intersection of Liulichang Street (No.115, Liulichang East Street), with 16 outlets in Haidian, Xidan, Xinjiekou, Chaoyangmen, Qianmen and dengshikou, and only Liulichang Street has 6 outlets. Because this bookstore has a history of more than 211 years, it has produced a group of outstanding talents who identify rare books of ancient books. They also insist on repairing rare books of ancient books with nails and woodblock printing.

◆ The four antique markets are far from each other

Since the reform and opening up, a number of antique markets have appeared in Beijing. After several years of natural development, these markets have been eliminated by the fittest, and some of them have shrunk, such as Gu Lou market, Chaowai shed market on Chaowai Shenlu Street in Chaoyang District, Huangchenggen market, Liangma collection market at No.59 Liangjiu Road in Chaoyang District, Zhaofeng market and so on. Now it has formed a scale, with the approval of the industrial and commercial departments and the supervision of the diaspora cultural relics department of Beijing Cultural Relics Bureau, there are four markets: Antique City, Haiwang Village, Rongxing Art Gallery and Hongqiao.

Beijing Antique City. This is the largest antique art trading center in Asia and the first antique art market in China to implement cultural relics supervision. It is located at No.21 East Third Ring South Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing, on the west side of Huawei overpass. The building area of the market is 23,111 square meters, the architectural pattern is ancient and elegant, the decoration is magnificent, and it has distinctive national characteristics in China. The business area * * * has four floors, connected by elevators, and there are more than 211 state-owned, collective and self-employed households. Business projects include ancient ceramics, Chinese calligraphy and painting, jewelry and jade, bone carving, red sandalwood, cloisonne, gold and silver bronzes, old furniture, carpets, antique clocks and watches, embroidered clothes, antiques and other miscellaneous items. It is also a designated unit of the Tourism Bureau that integrates tourism, shopping, accommodation, meetings and entertainment. There is a professional auction hall of 811 square meters, which can accommodate 511 people at the same time, supplemented by projection screen, electronic display screen, 24-way mixer, monitor, all kinds of ballroom lamps and GBL speakers, integrating auction, business, meeting and entertainment. Antique City Hotel has 45 standard rooms, KTV rooms in restaurants, conference rooms, beauty salons, etc., and there are parking lots, pedestrian streets and duty-free shops, which provide comprehensive services for industry and commerce, taxation, public security, banking, cultural relics appraisal and tourism. In addition to daily business, China Antique Art Fair, cultural relic art auction and folk culture festival are often held, which is a paradise for Chinese and foreign collectors and antique lovers and an art hall for Chinese and foreign tourists to appreciate the profound Chinese civilization.

haiwangcun antique market. Haiwang Village has a long history. As early as Liao Dynasty, it was named Haiwang Village in JD.COM, so it was called Haiwang Village before Liulichang. Haiwang Village is located at the intersection of Liulichang, No.115 East Street of Liulichang, with a superior location. In 1991, China Bookstore transformed it into an antique market of 1,111 square meters, with more than 71 collective and individual shops, mainly engaged in calligraphy and painting, ancient and modern ceramics, epigraphy and jade, bamboo and wood tooth carving, antique furniture and so on. Because some operators come from Shanxi, Shaanxi, Hebei, Guangxi, Guizhou and other places, the goods are more local and diverse. The market often holds antique book fairs, hardwood furniture fairs, painting and calligraphy fairs, etc. The market is well-managed and well-ordered, which has been well received by relevant departments. Japanese Prime Minister Junshu Haibei and US Secretary of State Albright also visited and shopped, making Haiwang Village antique market famous.

rongxing art gallery flea market. Located at No.19 Liulichang West Street, it is a comprehensive handicraft, antique and antique market, consisting of more than 121 stalls. There are more than 3,111 varieties of celebrity calligraphy and painting, stone seal cutting, Hu Bi Hui Mo, Duan Yan ancient pottery, ancient money ancient seal, jade tooth carving, antique clocks and watches, paper-cut clay figurines, gold and silver jewelry and art supplies. Because the market managers take good reputation as their aim and high-quality service as their guarantee, they make friends with domestic and foreign art lovers, so the daily customers are full, which is the market with the highest attendance rate among all markets and the only antique market with full stalls.

Hongqiao antique market. Located in Tiantan East Road, Chongwen District, Beijing, this market was once popular in Beijing three years ago. Later, due to the rectification of the city, the booth was moved to the third floor of Hongqiao Shopping Mall, and suddenly it was depressed. Recently, the Tiantan Park Management Office opened the northeast corner of Tiantan Park into a comprehensive shopping mall with antiques, China calligraphy and painting, oil painting, folk crafts, Jingdezhen ceramics, Yixing purple sand, tourist clothes and souvenirs, bonsai flowers and so on. Because of its superior geographical conditions and convenient transportation, there are restaurants, hotels and parking lots. Entertainment and other complementary, booth investment situation is very good, it is expected that there will be 1 years, this antique market will flourish.

In these cultural streets and antique markets with strong cultural atmosphere, a group of talented gallery managers have emerged. They understand art and are good at management. Compared with traditional old shops, they pay more attention to modern management characteristics, hold art exhibitions, introduce painters and emphasize artistic atmosphere. For example, Gao Hongdi, manager of Daqian Gallery, located at No.23, South Xinhua Street, Liulichang, is an appraisal researcher in the calligraphy and painting appraisal laboratory of China Academy of Art. His celebrity calligraphy and painting are trusted by customers. For the convenience of customers, he also runs Four Treasures of the Study, engraving stamps and mounting calligraphy and painting. Yang Guangtai, manager of Wenyatang Gallery located in Rongxing Art Gallery, not only deals in celebrity calligraphy and painting, but also deals in art books, celebrity albums and auction catalogues, and often holds art exhibitions and introduces painters. Lei Xiaoyong, manager of Huaiyin Mountain House, located at No.69 East Street of Liulichang, is engaged in a wide range of projects, such as elegant play in ancient China, bamboo and wood tooth carving, bronze ornaments, antique furniture, jade, porcelain, embroidery and statues.

The flea market is extremely active

In some remote or open areas of Beijing, some informal stall markets have been formed. The citizens put their own old coins, furnishings, stamps, food stamps, quotations from Chairman Mao, commemorative medals, old books, comic books and articles.