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| Zhen Shi Yuan Mendu'r Museum |
| 'You
are fantastic, grandpa' Hiroshima man's heroic mission to preserve vanishing culture Story by Edith Ni Photos by Iwamoto Kimio |
 Kimio Iwamoto at the entrance of his mendun'r museum in Beijing Language and Culture University |
"At that difficult point, Kiyoko calmly said to me, 'if this is the thing you want to do, let's do simply do it. It will do good to Chinese people.' "At the exhibition, I was surprised to see the mendun'r of my own old courtyard. I was very glad, yet I can't escape this sense of shame and loss. I walked in and out of that gate every day, but I never
noticed the deep meaning and historical significance that it incurred.After this exhibition, I feel deeply moved. Thank you,
thank you Mr. Iwamoto. We, all of us, every Beijinger should take action from now on to
protect our beautiful historic and cultural heritage. |
|
| If a mendun'r changed Iwamoto Kimio's life,
then Iwamoto Kimio, 62, also changed the fate of mendun'r.
February 20, 1998 marked the beginning of a new life.He took a picture, but did not realize right away.The Capital Museum had been closed and so Kimio had been headed toward the nearest subway station when a jet sculpture caught his eye in the dreamy dusk light. He approached instinctively, and discovered to his delight exquisite patterns carved on the stone.Kimio, then an art student of Beijing Language & Culture University, later learned that mendun'r --Beijing gate blocks --are a functional component of traditional quandrangles, with the patterns and carvings reflecting the social status of the house owner. In the following days, he strolled the hutongs and chatted to local residents for a better understanding.To his surprise, he discovered no efforts were being made to preserve these ancient objects, nor were there any research reports or detailed documents available on the subject. He knew then what he had to do. |
Kimio sees no link between his new hobby and his old home."There should be, I suppose," he says. "Yes, perhaps in the sense that we must cherish peace and preserve history."Born to a wealthy Hiroshima craftsman family making traditional musical instruments, Kimio harbored a passion for Chinese art from an early age.Fearing the worst, Iwamoto's family moved to the suburbs of Fukuyama City of Hiroshima Province in 1945, but his father stayed behind to look after the house."At that time, I was very young and I didn't really realize anything," says Kimio. As I grew up, I began to realize what had happened."After suffering the loss of his father and family members during the war, he chose Marxist Economy as his major at college."War is no good," says Kimio. "The damage it does to people's lives and my city was too much. The calamity goes beyond words."
After retiring from Osaka Mazida in 1997, Mr. Kimio and
wife Kiyoko came to Beijing to study Chinese calligraphy and painting and also to see
Chinese socialism in practice. His encounter with mendun'r completely changed all that. 
History
Although many mendun'r were destroyed in the Cultural Revolution (1966-76), Kimio discovered a more serious, more modern danger: city development and indifference.On his walks around the city, Kimio, saw firsthand the devastation of demolished houses and damaged mendun'r .It reminded him of gen fu, an ancient decoration of traditional Japanese dress, once so common that no Hiroshima home could be found without a handful.
Today, it is the odd preserve of special exhibitions of gen fu collected by tourists from the United States."Japanese people didn't pay any attention in protecting them in their striving for a Western style of dress," says Kimio."If a cultural heritage like mendun'r is denied proper preservation in good time, regret might befall the posterity of Beijing."
He drew up a plan and set three goals: 
* to draw a detailed map of mendun'r distribution
* to compile a photo archive
* to save as many as possible.
Museum
On December 20, 1998 an ordinary winter day brushed away by many Beijingers in their absent-minded expectation of the coming new year, Kimio experienced the highlight of his life: A mendun'r exhibition opened at the Museum of Chinese Revolutionary History.By then, he had taken some 4,000 color photos of 1,111 outstanding mendun'r and of high preservation value, published a mendun'r distribution map, and, with the help of his university, saved more than 64 mendun'rs.
Excited visitors filled three books full of comments. From old scholars who pledged to sacrifice their own energy in the preservation of the ancient culture to young artists who came to realize the value of traditon, Beijingers poured out their praise for the humble Japanese guest.
"You are fantastic, grandpa," wrote one child.
Kimio expects a grandson through his second son, Hujinami
Yashushi, a computer engineer, in September. Yashushi, eldest daughter Otta Nobuko and son
Iwamoto Keita have all visited Beijing to see his achievement.
"Without their support, especially my wife, I could not have realized my dream," he says. Kimio reveals that the great floods in South China last year forced sponsors to withdraw their promise of financing the exhibition.
"At that difficult point, Kiyoko calmly said to me, 'if this is the thing you want to do, let's do simply do it. It will do good to Chinese people.' "
They paid for the exhibition with his pension money. More than 500 "Mendun'r--Stone Gate Sculpture" books were sold at the exhibiton and they made back their money.His university invested more than 10,000 yuan building Beijing's first mendun'r museum, housing all 64. More people came to know about his work and joined efforts in preserving mendun'r.Some even went one step further as to start the preservation of the gate and the court as well.
 Students at Beijing Language and Culture University help Iwamoto Kimio build the museum |
 A typical pair of mendun'r at 10 Yuqian Hutong, Xicheng District saved from the fate of being demolished together with the house. |
Research
Kimio is a man of determination and scientific approach. His investigation and findings have filled in gaps in the fields of ancient architecture and culture.
For example, he demonstrates in detail three basic types of mendun'r: The lions, exclusive to the emperor and his royal family. Round shapes are for the gates of military officers. Square ones indicate the owner is a civil official.As for the complicated designs and patterns, Kimio prepared a special chapter, illustrating how bats symbolize good luck, pears stand for longevity, fish for prosperity, three goats for peace and lotus for a happy marriage.In June, Kimio was invited to give a lecture at People's University to an audience including relics-preservation officials.At a recent International Conference on the History of Beijing, Kimio released new progress in his mendun'r research.Finally, it has become common sense that mendun'r is something that should be taken seriously.
Zhen Shi Yuan Museum of Mendun'rs, Beijing Language & Culture University, 15 Xueyuanlu, Haidian.