The invention of the printing press with its movable metal type made it possible for ordinary people in Europe to obtain books, which until then had been almost exclusively the domain of the rich. Originally only monks in monastery scriptoria, and then from the 14^th century onward, secular scribes painstakingly copied books by hand for those who could afford them.

Parchment made of lamb- or sheepskin served as the basis for most books written by scribes, secular and non-secular. Paper, although introduced to Spain around 1150, only slowly made its way across Europe. With the invention of the printing press, paper took on new significance, although the first paper mill in England did not appear until 1495. The sudden influx of printed rather than hand-copied books made of paper altered society. This brought about changes in religion, literature and politics. For another century or more, the Church in Rome did everything it could to prevent ordinary people from obtaining copies of the Bible, and it forbade its translation from Latin into the vernacular. But the momentum created by the new printing press could not be stopped and eventually the people got what they wanted. We can say that this event began what we now call the communication age of our own computer world.

So important was metal type to Koreans that in 1234 the Korean government sponsored a foundry for metal type. The famous Korean scholar and poet Yi Minsun's collected works were published in 1241 by his son, Yi Ham, with movable metal type. This happened more than 200 years before Gutenberg's first Bible and other books were printed with movable metal type in Germany and across Europe. About 70 years before the famous Gutenberg Bible came off the press, the Jikji Simche Yogol, a Buddhist scripture, was printed in a Buddhist temple in Chungjoo, Korea in 1377. In 1972 UNESCO declared this book the oldest extant example of printing with moveable metal type in world history.

Of course, there were vast differences between the Korean metal type and that of Gutenberg and Schöffer. For one thing, the Koreans used copper or bronze for their type, while the Germans used an alloy of lead and antimony. The Koreans kept their type blocks from moving with strips of soft clay, the Germans used lead strips to keep their letters in place and properly spaced. Hence, we still speak of leading even today when we adjust the spacing of letters on our computers.

Even modern celadon ware is much treasured by collectors. The name for this form of glazing is thought to come from the name of the hero in a 17^th century French pastoral comedy. The color of the robe of Celadon, the main character in this comedy, apparently evoked the image of Chinese green-glazed ceramics, which had just reached Europe.

Two examples of celadon glaze: at the left a LOBED CUP and stand with chrysanthemum motive from the 13th century and at the right, a LIDDED EWER in the shape of a melon from the 12th century

The ROM's new Gallery of Korea contains many examples of Korean early earthenware from about 37 BC to AD 668, which is called the period of the Three Kingdoms, when Korea was not yet one kingdom. There is also pottery from the Unified Silla period (AD 668-935), the refined celadon ware from the Goryeo Dynasty (AD 918-1392), and blue-and-white porcelain from the Joseon Dynasty (AD 1392-1910). The Goryeo Dynasty, by the way, gave us the modern word for Korea.

To get further insight into early Korean life and art, the ROM currently features Korea Around 1900: The Paintings of Gisan. These are on display until September 4 at the Herman Herzog Levy Gallery. Gim Gisan was a prolific painter, who a little over a hundred years ago brought unknown Korea to the attention of the West. The ROM's own collection of Gisan's work consists of some of the largest he painted. Many have English comments written on them, which leads to the speculation that many of the paintings, the map, and Christian hymns were commissioned by Christian missionaries in Korea. On display is also an original copy of the first Western literary work translated into Korean. James Scarth Gale, a Canadian missionary, who spent 40 years in Korea, translated John Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. Gisan illustrated the book. Gale used the Korean Han'gul alphabet, first created in the mid-15th century to enable common people to express themselves in Korean without using the complicated Chinese pictographs. Galen also translated many Korean works of literature into English, and he is considered one of the most important scholars to bring Korean culture to the attention of the West.

A page from Gale's Pilgrim's Progress

Gisan paintings: Left to right: Procession of Groom's Party, Flying Kites on New Year's Day, Making Horsehair Hats

The ROM's new concept of displaying its collections is a beauty in itself. In the permanent galleries, for the most part, the display cases offer total vision of objects on view. They, thereby, take on a life of their own. The finely crafted cases also enhance the experience of looking at the great variety of objects on display. What is also so exciting for the visitor to the ROM is that the Far Eastern galleries are located in the restored main floor of the Philosophers' Walk building. Once hidden windows are opened up again to let natural light fall inside. To guard against sun damage, special scrims hang down over the windows without detracting from their architectural beauty. When walking through these galleries, one gets the feeling that the building is alive and breathing again. There is a sense of freedom wafting through the spaces that did not exist before.

The Chinese galleries offer such a variety of objects — about 3,000 — from a wide period of history, it is almost impossible to write about them here. The journey begins in prehistory and ends in the early 20^th. The visitor will be particularly awed by the gallery of Chinese architecture, the first such gallery in North America. Four storeys high, it among many items includes a full-scale reconstruction of the corner of a 17^th century Chinese Imperial Palace, similar to the type found in Beijing's Forbidden City. This reconstruction, created with traditional materials and building techniques, was executed by a crew of Chinese woodworkers, tilers and painters from Beijing's National Museum of Chinese Architecture.

Left to right: Folding chair, Ming Dynasty AD 1580- 1640, Reconstruction of a section of a 17th century Chinese Imperial Palace, Ivory Picnic Basket, Qing Dynasty AD 1736-1795

A Ming Tomb complex, built in AD 1656 for General Zu Dashou, combines artifacts from the late Ming and early Qing dynasties. The ROM recreated, among other things, the "spirit path" guarded by large stone camels, while a warrior attendant and a scepter-bearing civil official stand ready to serve the deceased in the next world. Having visited several Ming tombs, and walked down the Divine Road toward one of the few that is guarded by a myriad of such large animals, I can attest that the ROM has captured the feeling and monumentality of a Ming tomb, even if in a reduced space, with breathtaking authenticity. The same can be said of the Imperial Palace complex.

The third country in this East Asian gallery complex is the Prince Takamado Gallery of Japan. It consists of more than 600 objects, all taken from the ROM's own collection, the largest of its kind in Canada. Again, there is so much to see that it is difficult to cover everything in this article. There are enchanting hanging scrolls, many lacquered ware, armor, tea utensils used in Japan's famous tea ceremony and lots of porcelain, earthenware and stoneware.

JAPAN: Samurai Helmet, 1603-1867, Edo period; iron, lacquer, lacing

And now I have to come back to Korea. While Japanese culture has for westerners always stood in the forefront — aside from that of China — when thinking of the Far East, the amazing fact is that Japan was still in the 'stone age' when Korea was already highly civilized in its arts and social development. Japan relied heavily on Korean knowledge and technology throughout its early history. Around the 3^rd century AD, the Joseon Peninsula, which would eventually become a unified state under the Silla in the 7^th century AD, was divided into four states: the kingdom of Koguryo in the north, and in the south the kingdoms of Paekche and Silla, and along the southern coast, Kaya. Japan's cultural heritage finds its roots especially in Paekche, especially the Buddhist faith and government organizational systems. This influence lasted well into the 7^th century AD. But, Japan then developed its own culture, despite the early Korean, and also Chinese influences, just as Korean culture stayed distinct despite heavy Chinese influences. And that is why a sensitive observer will notice the subtle connections between the cultures, while also noticing the distinctiveness of each culture.

This leads me to writing about the new, exceptionally well laid-out Gallery of Canada: First Peoples. In a way, the Rotunda has become an anteroom to it and other galleries. The ROM has finally, by recreating itself, given the First Nations' Peoples the space their art and artifacts deserve. It occupies 10,000 square feet on the main floor of the Hilary and Galen Weston Wing of the ROM, located in the Queen's Park section of the museum complex. There are more than 1,000 objects to inform us of Native cultural expression. There are 10,000-year-old archeological artifacts as well as contemporary art and all that lies in-between. The ROM has taken a non-traditional way to the display of these objects, assisted by Native advisors. In addition to a large collection of Native art objects, ancient and modern, the ROM also gives full display to its extensive collection of Paul Kane paintings and sketches. These are some of the best visual depictions in existence of Native life in the mid-19th century.

Paul Kane, oil on canvas 1848-52:
A Sketch on Lake Huron, Southeastern Ojibway

As one wanders through this space, it becomes very obvious that old prejudices have no value here. Native art is very much a past and a present thing. Whether it be bead work, stone carving, decorative designs on clothing or on utensils, and even the shape of large birchbark canoes remind us that these objects are not mere artifacts, but belong in the realm of art, as do the paintings and other works of contemporary Native artists. On the latter, however, one hopes that some day they will no longer have to be separated from the mainstream of Canadian artists, but become wholly part of the art world. As the founder of our artistic background as a nation, Native art greatly shaped our self-image, and today's Native artists are very much a part of this image.

Left to right: Horse whip (without lash), 1800 European/Blackfoot or Sarcee, Saskatchewan or Alberta; Jerkin, 190708, Plains, Assiniboine (Nakoda); Raven Rattle, 1846?-48, Haida?, northwest coast

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Epilogue

Whatever anyone may think or feel about the addition of the Daniel Libeskind designed Crystal to the existing ROM complex, no one can be disappointed in the overall redesign of the original buildings. One is not concerned with whether or not the new structure fits into the architectural image of the area between Bloor Street, Queen's Park and the University of Toronto area. Libeskind and the local architects with whom he worked, as well as the ROM's own design team, have a vision of the ROM that is exciting. One now hopes that the era in which old buildings were disfigured to make them conform to more modern ideas, is past us.

All images, with the exception of the Gutenberg Press, © Royal Ontario Museum