For 700 years, Yongle Palace, a Taoist temple in Ruicheng, Shanxi province, stood near the Yellow River, where it witnessed the seasons wax and wane.
As its glory faded over time, it was abandoned following the decline of the Quanzhen School of Taoism ("School of All Authenticity"). By 1952, the name of this temple dedicated to the Chinese belief system, had been forgotten, even by nearby villagers.
That year, during the first national cultural relic census conducted by the People's Republic of China, which had been founded three years earlier, researchers were overjoyed to "rediscover" this large Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368) temple complex, which covers an area of 24.8 hectares. They were even more overjoyed to discover that its exquisite murals of Taoist deities still had the power to amaze.
Since then, the temple's extraordinary past has gradually come to light, and the cultural landmark — the only surviving national-level official architectural complex from the Yuan Dynasty discovered to date — has risen again in memory.
The Glory Within Authenticity, an exhibition that opened at the National Library of China in Beijing last week, and which will run through to the end of August, is currently exploring the beauty of Yongle Palace through 150 precious cultural artifacts, including architectural components, murals and documents, as well as digitized images that bring history back to life.
"The wealth of Yongle Palace artifacts reflects a mix of different cultures in creative ways," says An Hai, curator of the exhibition and deputy director of Shanxi provincial institute for protection and research of ancient architecture, painted sculptures and murals.
"They demonstrate features of their era and the latest fruits of research. Studies in recent years also highlight the remarkable value of this temple," he adds.
