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With many noteworthy artifacts of ancient China, the collection reflects John Young's interest in his ancestral homeland. The objects range from Neolithic pottery jars that date as far back as 3000-2000 B.C.E., to Han Dynasty tomb figures (206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.), to the early Ming Dynasty (14th century). There are several pieces from the Korean Three Kingdoms (5th-6th centuries) and early Goryeo (10th-11th centuries) included in John Young's bequest. Japan is represented by a Sue stoneware flask (5th-6th centuries) and a Mashiko stoneware plate by a Living National Treasure of Japan, Shimaoka Tatsuzo.
The Pacific Islands are represented by pieces from New Guinea, New Zealand (Maori art), Fiji, Sumatra, Sulawesi, Timor, Solomon Islands, the Admiralty Islands, and Taiwan. John Young's endowment also includes several handsome pieces from Africa (Mali, Ghana, Nigeria). Of special note are several authentic Hawaiian koa wood chairs that were gifted to the University by students. The earliest piece, a koa armchair, was originally presented to the Territorial Normal School in 1906 by a graduating class. In 1931, the Normal School merged with the University of Hawai‘i's Department of Education to become Teachers College (presently the UHM College of Education). The chairs were gifted to the museum by the College of Education. |
he museum's starter collection represents the University of Hawai‘i's special interests in Asia and the Pacific region and is largely contributed by the late John Young, whose vision for a University museum was the inspiration for the project.
Pieces from Southeast Asia include ceramics of the Khmer, ranging from the 11th to 13th centuries; Ban Chiang pottery dating from 2,000 to 1,000 B.C.E.; and works from Burma, Thailand, and other Asian nations.