The Museum of East Asian Art or MEAA is in Bennett Street, Bath,

Somerset ( en, All The People of Somerset) , locator_map = , coordinates = , region = South West England , established_date = Ancient , established_by = , preceded_by = , origin = , lord_lieutenant_office =Lord Lieutenant of Somerset , lord_ ...

, England. Just a few metres off The Circus in central Bath, the Museum of East Asian Art is situated in a restored

Georgian Georgian may refer to: Common meanings * Anything related to, or originating from Georgia (country) ** Georgians, an indigenous Caucasian ethnic group ** Georgian language, a Kartvelian language spoken by Georgians **Georgian scripts, three scrip ...

house. Its collection includes

ceramics A ceramic is any of the various hard, brittle, heat-resistant and corrosion-resistant materials made by shaping and then firing an inorganic, nonmetallic material, such as clay, at a high temperature. Common examples are earthenware, porcelain ...

, jades, bronzes and

bamboo Bamboos are a diverse group of evergreen perennial flowering plants making up the subfamily Bambusoideae of the grass family Poaceae. Giant bamboos are the largest members of the grass family. The origin of the word "bamboo" is uncertain, ...

carvings and more, from China, Japan,

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

and

Southeast Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainlan ...

. It is the only museum in the United Kingdom dedicated solely to arts and cultures of East and Southeast Asia.McCready,G., 100 Fascinating Facts about Bath. The Bath Magazine, January 2011: p. 25. It houses a collection of almost 2,000 objects, ranging in date from c.5000

BCE Common Era (CE) and Before the Common Era (BCE) are year notations for the Gregorian calendar (and its predecessor, the Julian calendar), the world's most widely used calendar era. Common Era and Before the Common Era are alternatives to the or ...

to the present day. The Museum's collection started from the collection of Brian McElney, a retired solicitor who practised in

Hong Kong Hong Kong ( (US) or (UK); , ), officially the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (abbr. Hong Kong SAR or HKSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China on the eastern Pearl River Delta i ...

for over 35 years, and has since been expanded.

History

The Museum was founded by Brian McElney. McElney spent his entire working life practising law in

and it was during this time that he was drawn to East Asian and especially

Chinese art Chinese art is visual art that originated in or is practiced in China, Greater China or by Chinese artists. Art created by Chinese residing outside of China can also be considered a part of Chinese art when it is based in or draws on Chinese ...

. In 1958, he bought his first piece, an ivory goat and kid, after which Brian's collection grew to include jades, ceramics, scholar's studio objects and bronzes.Lee, Nancy Chang.,Brian S. McElney’s New Museum of East Asian Art. Orientations Magazine, March 1993: pp. 58–61. After his retirement from law in 1983, McElney returned to England and procured the funds for the restoration and refurbishment of the Georgian building that houses the Museum, founding the Museum itself in 1990. McElney donated his private collection to form the Museum, which he had created as a UK educational charity, opening to the public in 1993. Although the bulk of the objects come from this original donation, new donations and acquisitions have been made over the years. Since opening to the public in April 1993, the Museum has become one of the most extensive collections of

East Asian art East Asian art includes: *Chinese art *Japanese art Japanese art covers a wide range of art styles and media, including Jōmon pottery, ancient pottery, Japanese sculpture, sculpture, Ink wash painting, ink painting and Japanese calligraphy, cal ...

outside

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, and it is the only museum dedicated solely to the arts and cultures of East and Southeast Asia within the UK.Lee, Michel., Museum Curator Interview. The Bath Magazine, October 2010: p. 40. With a collection of almost 2,000 objects, ranging in date from c.5000 BCE to the present day, the Museum offers its visitors an insight into the art and cultures of China, Japan, Korea and Southeast Asia. Home to one of the most comprehensive jade collections in the UK,Iseard, Nicola., Bath Time is a Real Treat. The Daily Express, 15 January 2011: p. 59. the collection uncovers the skill of East Asian craftsmanship.

Relationship with Bath

Bath and the West Country also have historical links to China. The trade in

Chinese tea Tea is a beverage made from the leaves of tea plants (''Camellia sinensis'') and boiled water. Tea leaves are processed using traditional Chinese methods. Chinese tea is consumed throughout the day, including during meals, as a substitute for p ...

and

porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...

was one of the most valued aspects of commerce in 18th century England and Bath was the second most popular resort after London for these activities.Kennedy, R., Between Bath and China; Trade and Culture in the West Country 1680 to 1840. 1998, The Museum of East Asian Art. By the mid-18th century tea drinking had become an important part in the city's social life. This historical relationship is illustrated by the Museum's collection of

Armorial Porcelain Armorial ware or heraldic china (and a variety of other terms) are ceramics decorated with a coat of arms, either that of a family, or an institution or place. Armorials have been popular on European pottery from the Middle Ages with examples see ...

in the Ceramics Gallery, with the pieces on display having been made for prominent families in 18th century Bath and the surrounding region. This includes the Pratt Family Tureen which was purchased with funding from the

Museums, Libraries and Archives Council The Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) was until May 2012 a non-departmental public body and registered charity in England with a remit to promote improvement and innovation in the area of museums, libraries and archives. Its function ...

(MLA), the

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and nam ...

(V&A), and

The Art Fund Art Fund (formerly the National Art Collections Fund) is an independent membership-based British charity, which raises funds to aid the acquisition of artworks for the nation. It gives grants and acts as a channel for many gifts and bequests, as ...

charity.

Collection

The Museum of East Asian Art's permanent collection of

, jades, bronzes and

carvings and more are based over the two upper galleries of the Museum. These galleries house the bulk of their almost 2,000 objects, ranging in date from c.5000

to the present day. Further objects, which are rotated into the permanent collection regularly, are stored in the Museum vaults and the Franklin Tsu Gallery on the ground floor is used to house temporary exhibitions. The Museum hosts regular temporary exhibitions and has a full event programme that runs alongside these. In 2008 the Museum won a Learning Experience Award for their "Season of Tibet" exhibitions, one of their best received exhibition and event series to date. The exhibition of contemporary papercuts, hosted in 2010 to coincide with the Lunar New Year, was so popular with the public that it was extended. The Museum has also been involved with external exhibitions and is one of the Museum partners on the travelling exhibition organised by the

National Geographic Society The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational organizations in the world. Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, an ...

, which includes almost 100 items from the Museum's collection. Whilst on the

Oman Oman ( ; ar, عُمَان ' ), officially the Sultanate of Oman ( ar, سلْطنةُ عُمان ), is an Arabian country located in southwestern Asia. It is situated on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula, and spans the mouth of ...

leg of the tour, the exhibition was visited by the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, who expressed an interest in having the exhibition visit the

United Nations Headquarters zh, 联合国总部大楼french: Siège des Nations uniesrussian: Штаб-квартира Организации Объединённых Наций es, Sede de las Naciones Unidas , image = Midtown Manhattan Skyline 004.jpg , im ...

in New York. The Museum of East Asian Art has a full quarterly events programme, hosting a range of events on and off site which have included a talk by the

Antiques Roadshow ''Antiques Roadshow'' is a British television programme broadcast by the BBC in which antiques appraisers travel to various regions of the United Kingdom (and occasionally in other countries) to appraise antiques brought in by local people ( ...

Lars Tharp Lars Broholm Tharp (born 27 March 1954, Copenhagen, Denmark)THARP, Lars Broholm
, '' < ...

, and Bath's first East Asian Film Festival.

2018 burglary

At 1:20 am on April 17, 2018, four men broke into the museum and stole 48 objects. Items stolen included 22 jades, 10 ceramics, and a Tang era marriage mirror. Due to the items taken and the speed of the burglary, police suspected that items were "stolen to order." The museum closed following the burglary and reopened to the public on May 3, 2018. In May 2019, it was announced that 18 damaged objects had been returned by the Avon and Somerset police.

References

External links

Museum website
{{authority control Art museums established in 1993 Museums in Bath, Somerset Art museums and galleries in Somerset Asian art museums in the United Kingdom Museum of East Asian Art, Bath