More than 315,000visited China exhibit

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    By HEATHER HUMPHRE

    From Nov. 1, 1995 to March 16, 1996, over 315,000 people visited BYU to view the riches displayed in the Imperial Tombs of China exhibit at the Museum of Art.

    The attendance of this exhibit certainly beat the Etruscan exhibit, the first exhibit at the Museum of Art, from Oct. ’93 to April ’94, which had 178,000 people in attendance. It did not surpass the attendance of the Ramses II exhibit, however, because that exhibit which was in the Bean Museum from Oct. 25, 1985 to April 15, 1986, ran two months longer than the Imperial Tombs of China exhibit, said David Miles, ticket manager. 520,000 people visited the Ramses II exhibit.

    To begin with, Imperial Tombs of China was a world class exhibition of things never seen outside of China before. People showed their enthusiasm for the exhibit from the very beginning, said Charlene Winters, coordinator of marketing, advertising and public relations.

    Tourists came from diverse locations across the country such as California, Connecticut and Georgia. The program was successful because of broad regional support — a large portion of support came from Utah and the Intermountain West.

    School children attending the exhibit numbered 71,061.

    Credit goes to the Museum of Art for the great work it did in making the exhibit an educational experience for school children, Winters said.

    The exhibit featured prized artifacts from twenty different museums and respondents across China. “They were giving us a sampling of their best,” Winters said.

    Artifacts that were of special interest to the attendees of the exhibit included a jade burial shroud, a celestial horse from the Han Dynasty, a phoenix crown made of pearls, sapphires and rubies, and the artifacts of the Throne room.

    Dr. James Mason, director for the Museum of Art, “is to be applauded for his influence in bringing in such an exhibition,” Winters said.

    Going to the exhibit and listening to its tape, gave visitors a sense of being in the oldest continuous civilization in the world, Winters said.

    The exhibit was a success because its content was so appealing to the public, and it brought something that is old and unique to Provo. In addition, a great job was done in promoting and advertising. BYU has a first class facility to present such exhibits, Miles said.

    To gain public attention for the exhibit, billboards were posted all over Utah and television and radio announcements were aired. Provo helped the effort by letting banners be put up on the perimeters of campus at no charge, letting posters be put up in kiosks, and allowing Imperial Tombs of China bookmarks to be inserted in utility bills.

    Hotels also contributed to the effort by offering customers Imperial Tombs of China packages and placing personalized fortune cookies advertising the exhibit on the beds of their guests.

    Val Kendall was an invaluable consultant for the radio and television advertisements and Paul Anderson, exhibition designer, transpired us to another time by his excellent design, Winters said.

    Prior to coming to BYU, the exhibit started its tour in Memphis, where it enjoyed comparable success. The exhibition will continue its tour in Portland, followed by Denver and Orlando, and then will return to China.

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