Golden Dragon Museum facts for kids
| 金龙博物馆 | |
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| Established | 1991 |
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| Location | Dai Gum San 1-11 Bridge St, Bendigo, Victoria, Australia |
| Type | History museum |
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The Golden Dragon Museum (Chinese: 金龙博物馆) is in Bendigo, Victoria, Australia. It celebrates the amazing culture and history of Chinese Australians, especially in the Bendigo area. The museum is built where one of Bendigo's old Chinatowns used to be. You can also find beautiful Chinese Gardens and a temple to Kuan Yin nearby. It was the first museum in Victoria to get special accreditation, meaning it meets high standards.
Contents
Discovering the Museum's Past
The Golden Dragon Museum first opened its doors in 1991. It stands on the site of an old Chinatown in Bendigo. This area, called Bridge Street Chinatown, was a busy place for Chinese people from the late 1800s until 1964. Sadly, the old buildings were knocked down by the city council to make space for a car park.
In the 1980s, a man named Russell Jack had a big idea. He wanted to create a Chinese museum in the area. Once enough money was found, Harry Charalambous became the architect. His design mixed Chinese symbols and building styles with Australian materials. Things like corrugated iron and red brick were used. This showed the unique history of the Chinese people in Bendigo.
Chinese heritage is a very important part of Bendigo's culture. During the Victorian gold rush in the late 1800s, thousands of Chinese people came to Bendigo. Most were young men from the Guangdong province in China. They hoped to find better jobs and make money for their families. When they arrived in Bendigo, the Chinese people formed their own community. They also started raising money for charities.
In the 1870s, the local Chinese community was invited to join the yearly Easter festival. The older Chinese leaders raised money to buy amazing costumes and special items for the event. These costumes are now a big part of the museum's collection. They are well-kept clothes made from silk and real gold thread.
How the Museum Got Its Name
In 1988, which was the Chinese year of the Golden Dragon, people started raising money for the museum. The most important item planned for the museum was a huge parade dragon named Loong. Its Chinese name is Huárén jīnlóng, which means "The Chinese Golden Dragon".
What You Can See at the Museum
The Golden Dragon Museum was created to protect, save, and teach about the history of Chinese people in Bendigo. It received a large and important collection of Chinese parade items from the Bendigo Chinese Association. These items became the start of the museum's collection. Since then, the collection has grown a lot with many donations, both small and large.
Parade Costumes from the 1880s
This huge collection is the main part of the museum. It includes theatrical costumes made from silk, furs, and gold thread. These pieces were once used in Bendigo's Easter Parade. The Chinese people of Bendigo had a long history of parades and celebrations. These often happened in their camps on the goldfields. They were usually for Chinese New Year or other Chinese cultural events.
Later, in the 1870s, the Easter Parade became a yearly event in Bendigo. The Chinese community joined in. The Chinese part of the parade quickly became one of the most detailed sections. In these early parades, the Chinese used items they had made in Australia or brought from China.
In 1880, Chinese community leaders in Bendigo decided to collect money from all Chinese people in the area. This money would be used to buy items for the Easter Parade. They raised £750. This money was sent to China to buy many crates full of richly embroidered costumes. There were enough costumes for hundreds of people to act as a Chinese court. There were scholars, generals, soldiers, princesses, and even an emperor. Some roles in the parade became very popular. Chinese people in the region would bid money for the honor of wearing certain costumes. All the money raised went to local charities. Much of this amazing collection is still at the museum today.
Amazing Dragons
The Golden Dragon Museum is home to what are thought to be the oldest and longest imperial dragons in the world. Sun Loong is the longest imperial dragon. It is over 100 meters (328 feet) long! Sun Loong was part of the Bendigo Easter Festival every year until 2019. Then, a new dragon, Dai Gum Loong, took its place. Dai Gum Loong is even longer, at 125 meters (410 feet)!
Loong is the oldest imperial dragon and is very important. It is even listed as a heritage item. Loong is a special part of Australian history. It danced in the parades for the federation of Australia in 1901 and its 100-year celebration in 2001. The museum also has other dragons that still perform today.
The John St Alban Collection
In 2001, John St Alban, a collector from Adelaide, started giving parts of his collection to the museum. He bought these items from Chinese dealers in the 1900s. This collection has fancy furniture and decorations from palaces and temples of the late Qing dynasty. It's rare to see such large pieces on display outside of China.
The collection includes screens, thrones, and chairs made of Huanghuali wood. There are also many detailed silver, cloisonné, and bronze incense burners. Jade carvings are set into the wooden pieces and other items. Some jade pieces stand on their own. You can also see cloisonné bronze and marble statues of guardians and religious figures. Porcelain items were also given. One dish has been dated back to the Song dynasty.
Dai Gum San Wax Works Collection
The Dai Gum San Wax Works in Bendigo closed down in the late 1980s. It had many wax figures of Chinese people, including one of Sun Yat-sen. All these figures were given to the Bendigo Chinese Association. When the Golden Dragon Museum opened, they became an important part of the displays. These wax figures were made in Hong Kong by Vivian Sun and arrived in Bendigo in 1973.
The Horrie Bridges Collection
Horrie Bridges was a local man from Bendigo who loved collecting foreign money. Over many years and several trips to China, he gathered a huge collection of Chinese currency. He gave this collection to the museum in 1991.
The collection has several Zhou dynasty era pieces of knife money. The oldest round coins are two from the Qin dynasty. From there, the collection of ancient Chinese coinage is very large and complete. Bridges also collected paper money. All the paper items are from the 1900s. There are notes from the Republic of China era (1912–1949). There are also notes from the People's Republic and some rare notes from Manchukuo. This collection is believed to be the largest collection of Chinese money on display anywhere in Australia.
Learning and Education
The Golden Dragon Museum welcomes school groups from all over Australia. It has several displays that show the success and value of multiculturalism. The museum also has displays that show the difficulties and unfair treatment many Chinese people faced. This was due to the White Australia policy at the start of the 1900s. Besides these specific displays, the many Chinese items are great examples of Chinese culture and history.
The Golden Dragon Museum also offers fun craft workshops for visiting groups. It also shares its knowledge with other community museums around Australia. In 2013, the museum started offering Chinese language classes at night.
Images for kids
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The main entrance of the Golden Dragon Museum.
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The logo of the Golden Dragon Museum.
