:::

Lanyang Museum Special Collection

The Museum Collection

The museum collection is tasked with preserving the history of human development in Yilan as well as the wisdom residents derive from nature. Most of the items reflect the customs and traditions of the locals. The museum’s initial collection included 2,453 artifacts, eventually expanding to include both animal and geological specimen. The museum now houses a vast collection of numerous discoveries, which totals more than 8,112 items as of December 2017.

The cultural relics in the museum represent the customs of the Han Chinese, Atayal, and Kavalan peoples. These relics include tools and production equipment, eating utensils, clothing and accessories, home furnishings, transportation and shipping equipment; items related to religious observances, ceremonial objects, and rites of passage; architectural and design objects, and many other items central to local customs. Notable items include early period ceramic bowls and plates, religious objects, and traditional prints used by the residents in Yilan to honor their cultural heritage. Our current project is dedicated to acquiring any object that accurately reflects cultural memory in Yilan from the Qing Dynasty up through the 1970s. 

The museum has set up a digital archive in hopes that an open, digital platform would help researchers to better access the collection. An online website also expands the various uses for our collection, and allows all residents to enjoy these resources.

The Museum Collection
The Museum Collection

Archeological Relics

Archeological excavation began in the early 1990s, when the pressures from public construction led to increased excavation in Yilan. Beginning with the Wanshan Mountain site in 1998 until the Yilan Agricultural School site in 2006, archeological research produced a total of 1,470,000 artifacts. The vast archeological relics held varying significance and became an indicator of successful development in the region in the past. The most important was the Human and Beast jade formation from Wanshan Mountain and the Golden Carp from Kiwulan site, which have both been classified as national treasures. The geometric figure pottery from Yilan is locally-produced natural pottery. The pottery is thin and light. While the pottery is unglazed, the bowls can hold water without leaking and will not crack from heating. This truly reflects its ingenious production quality.

Archeological Relics - Beast jade formation from Wanshan Mountain
Archeological Relics - Beast jade formation from Wanshan Mountain

Please feel free to contact us for more information about archeological excavations in Yilan.

Archeological Relics - Golden Carp from Kiwulan site
Archeological Relics - Golden Carp from Kiwulan site