建立古鎮博物館芻議

每次出席“兩會”，都如沐春風。今年的“兩會”尤其這樣。

今年政協會議上，我提出了一個關于在重要古村鎮抓緊建立小型博物館的提案。在這里我先講講這個提案的主要思路。

我國歷史悠久，民族眾多，自然氣候不同，文化板塊多樣，形成了千姿百態、風情各異的古村鎮。古村鎮是中華大地上最大的文化遺產。中華文化的多樣性在古村鎮中，非物質文化遺產在古村鎮中，少數民族的文化遺產絕大部分在古村鎮中；中華民族文化的根也深深存在于古村鎮中。但是在現代化和城市化的沖擊中，古村鎮消失很快。一方面，是以建筑為主體的整體上的瓦解，一方面是村鎮內部的歷史文化遺存的大量流失。有些村鎮雖然表面看風格猶存，但實際上內部遺存殘存無多，已成文化的空巢。

古村鎮的保護，一方面是古老的村容鎮貌，一方面是它的內涵。否則這些古村鎮即使保留下來，已是徒具形骸，內涵空洞，記憶真空。當務之急是在這些重要的古村鎮建立博物館。具體建議如下：

一、古村鎮博物館的布局由政府文化部門主導，專家制定。可以是國家一級，也可以是省一級來規劃。

二、不要搞勞民傷財的大型博物館，宜小型和富于實效。條件較差的貧困地區，以搶救性收集為主，收集內容包括特色家具、古代農具、歷史文獻、文化器物以及其他各類文化遺存。繼而進行整理、分類、陳列。

三、古村鎮博物館應是百花齊放、各具特色、多樣化的。避免搞簡單化統一格式的村史博物館或民俗博物館。要突出地域特色，也可重點突出某一種當地富有的非物質文化遺產。

四、博物館的方案要請相關專家學者來幫助與策劃，以使博物館真正具有歷史記憶和文化積淀的價值，并富于科學性和深度。

五、小型博物館用錢不多，但于文化保護意義深遠。經費來源應是多方面的。包括地方財政、企業贊助、旅游建設經費等。個人收藏家熱心建立博物館也應大力支持?？梢允敲褶k公助，也可以是公辦民助，也可以是民間捐贈性的，也可以是私人性質的，愈靈活愈好，以利盡快將古村鎮博物館在全國全面鋪開。

六、要明令禁止古董販子到古村鎮“淘寶”，杜絕遺存的流失，把千百年的文化成果留在本地。同時，向村鎮百姓普及文化遺產知識，保護好古村鎮的文化整體。

七、古村鎮的博物館建成后，在文化上可成為新農村文化建設不可或缺的重要成果；在經濟上，可成為旅游設施，增加收入。

古村鎮面臨的破壞是嚴重的、多方面的。保護是緊迫、艱巨和不能回避的。小型和多樣的博物館是保護古村鎮遺產的重要方式。在新農村建設中，博物館的建立還是先進文化不可或缺的內容，而且在旅游開發中，又是促使外地游人認識古村鎮必備的設施。因之希望政府文化部門能確認和啟動這攸關中華遺產存亡的文化舉措。

Setting Up Museums to Protect Ancient Village Cultures

By Feng Jicai

Editor: Feng Jicai is a Tianjin-based writer and an enthusiast for preserving ancient cultural sites across the country. The following is an edited version of some thoughts behind his proposal presented to the annual session of the CPPCC held in Beijing in March， 2007.

China， a multiethnic country with a long history and different cultural traditions， has numerous ancient villages and towns， which constitute the largest cultural legacy of the country. These ancient villages and towns are where the diversity of the Chinese culture， intangible cultural heritage， and ethnic cultures gravitate. In other words， the Chinese culture is rooted in these villages and towns across the country. However， as modernization and urbanization are spreading across the country， ancient villages and towns are vanishing. Two factors contribute to their disappearance: firstly， age-old villages are disintegrating as a whole， and secondly， the cultural heritages within villages and towns are draining away. Though some villages and towns still look ancient， their cultural contents are no longer there. In fact， some villages and towns are empty of their ancient cultures.

The protection of ancient villages and towns calls for preservation of both appearance and cultural content.

It is desirable to take the following concrete steps to protect ancient villages and towns across the country:

1) The cultural authorities of the government should play a leading role in planning the setup strategies of museums of ancient villages and towns. Experts participate. The strategy can be national or provincial.

2) Large-scale museums would be a waste of energy and money. Small museums in different styles should be emphasized to ensure effective protection. In poverty-stricken areas， the emphasis should be on salvaging cultural heritages such as ancient furniture， farming tools， historical documents， cultural items and other cultural remains.

3) Diversity is a key word for the planning of small museums. Avoid turning all these museums into the uniformity of village histories or folk lifestyles. Regional features such as intangible cultural heritages should be emphasized.

4) Experts should be consulted in formulating plans for these museums to ensure that historical memories and cultural values are scientifically preserved for in-depth studies.

5) Funds should come from various sources: local governments， businesses and tourism. Private collectors should be encouraged to set up their museums. Subsidies from local governments， contributions from private sectors and donators are welcome.

6) Antique dealers should be banned from searching and buying out cultural heritages from ancient villages and towns so as to make the age-old things stay where they are. Governments at different levels should promote awareness among villagers for better preservation of overall cultural heritages.

7) Once built， these museums can be part of the campaign of promoting the cultural development in the new countryside. They may also contribute as a source to local income.

Since the destructive situation facing the ancient villages and towns is serious and multiple， protection is urgent， unavoidable， and arduous. Small museums in various styles are a key way to protect the cultural heritage of ancient villages and towns. They will also play an indispensable part in the building of the advanced culture in rural areas. In the development of tourism， they will also be important facilities to help visitors become aware of the importance of ancient villages and towns.It is imperative that government cultural authorities acknowledge and implement this measure which bears on the fate of the Chinese cultural heritage.

(Translated by David)