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36-664: On January 1, 2005, Shantou Cultural Revolution Museum , the first museum dedicated to the Cultural Revolution in China, was opened in the Tashan Scenic Area, due to the unyielding efforts of Peng Qi'an (彭启安), the former vice mayor of Shantou. In 2016, the museum was closed down. This Guangdong location article is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Shantou Cultural Revolution Museum The Shantou Cultural Revolution Museum

72-701: A hero in China. This version was issued "for internal use" to the military leaders. Following discussions that expanded the book twice more—finally closing on 33 topics and 427 quotations by Mao—the commission began publishing the definitive version in May 1965. At the end of 1965, the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party officially approved the book for publication by the People's Publishing House and for distribution within China by

108-490: A list of five people for whom execution was recommended to higher authorities, due to his alleged association with a " counter-revolutionary " group named after two local leaders who had lost power. The district government originally opposed the construction of the museum. Friends and other officials expressed their worries to Peng that he might run afoul of authorities, but he remained unfazed. Business tycoon and philanthropist Li Ka-Shing donated 300,000 Renminbi towards

144-516: A place of caution for the Chinese nation , and that he did not intend to undermine the credibility of the CCP through the museum. He also said that it was possible to understand the intentions of the museum by reading "between the lines". From 2006 to 2013, Peng and a group of volunteers held an annual memorial ceremony at the museum in remembrance of the victims of the Cultural Revolution. The date of

180-485: Is a book of statements from speeches and writings by Mao Zedong (formerly romanized as Mao Tse-tung), the former chairman of the Chinese Communist Party , published from 1964 to 1979 and widely distributed during the Cultural Revolution . The most popular versions were printed in small sizes that could be easily carried and were bound in bright red covers, thus commonly becoming known internationally as

216-539: The PLA General Political Department , the chief political organ under Central Military Commission , revised Quotations , adding a half title page with the slogan " Workers of the world, unite! " ( 全世界无产者，联合起来！ ) in bold red letters, and endorsement leaves written by Lin Biao , Mao's chosen successor, that included three lines from the diary of revolutionary soldier Lei Feng who is considered

252-636: The Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party approved Quotations from Chairman Mao for export. To meet overseas requirements, the editors of the Chinese Foreign Languages Press made revisions necessitated by the situation. They added a "second edition preface" endorsement by Lin Biao , dated 16 December 1966 (which was torn out following Lin Biao's death and public disgrace in September 1971). On

288-488: The Xinhua Bookstore . The Ministry of Culture held special study meetings to develop a production and distribution plan. It sought assurances that the book would receive publishing priority and that there would be sufficient paper, ink, and printing presses available. The goal was for "ninety-nine percent (of the population of China to) read Chairman Mao's book", according to a catalogue of publication records of

324-513: The " Little Red Book ". Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung was originally compiled by an office of the PLA Daily ( People's Liberation Army Daily ) as an inspirational political and military document. The initial publication covered 23 topics with 200 selected quotations by Mao, and was entitled 200 Quotations from Chairman Mao . It was first given to delegates of a conference on 5 January 1964 who were asked to comment on it. In response to

360-459: The "tragedy of the Cultural Revolution" to be repeated was engraved at a wall near the park entrance. Quotations by Ren had also been engraved elsewhere in Tashan Scenic Area. The museum also had statues of Liu Shaoqi , a former president who was one of the first victims of the Cultural Revolution, and of Marshal Ye Jianying , who spearheaded the action taken against the Gang of Four. Surrounding

396-455: The 1960s, the book was the single most visible icon in mainland China, even more visible than images of Mao himself. In posters and pictures created by CCP's propaganda artists, nearly every painted character, whether smiling or looking determined, was seen with a copy of the book in his or her hand. During the Mao era, when people swore oaths they would often do so on Quotations . After the end of

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432-426: The 4-volume set of Selected Works of Marx and Engels that had already been printed (both in cloth hardcover and paperback) remained undistributed in storage warehouses on the grounds that other works "should not interfere with learning Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung ". On the other hand, several other works by Mao had very large printings during the same period, even though these editions were not produced in

468-416: The Cultural Revolution due to the sensitivity of the topic. After retiring from public office in 1999, Peng intensified his efforts towards the project. Including the main museum, altogether 25 scenic spots were built on Pagoda Park, one at a time whenever enough money had been raised by Peng. During the Cultural Revolution, Peng had been subjected to at least 30 criticism sessions ; in 1967 he had been on

504-491: The Cultural Revolution in 1976 and the rise of Deng Xiaoping in 1978, the importance of the book waned considerably, and the glorification of Mao's quotations was considered to be left deviationism and a cult of personality . Quotations continues to be a symbol of Mao Zedong Thought in China today. In certain situations, the book is given as a gift, for example, when public funds are involved, or when personal events arise, such as congratulating newlyweds. Today in China,

540-441: The Cultural Revolution, and his last wife, Gang of Four member Jiang Qing . Hundreds of gray granite slabs around the circumference of its inner walls had etchings of paintings from the two volumes of the book by Yang Kelin. Some paraphernalia such as little red books and Mao busts and badges were removed after some artifacts had disappeared. A library inside the museum held nearly 300 books as of 2005. A large granite slab at

576-609: The People's Publishing House. Provinces, municipalities, and autonomous regions across China were ordered to build hundreds of new printing houses to publish the Quotations during the second half of 1966, which pushed the limits of the Chinese printing industry. This disrupted plans for publishing any new volumes of The Complete Works of Marx and Engels that was already in progress. It also halted distribution of other ideological works. As late as 1970, more than 8 million copies of

612-399: The bank account of the museum for receiving donations was closed. In 2015, Peng handed over the museum to the local government, citing his old age. Previous attempts by Peng to find a successor, who he had wanted to be prestigious and influential, had failed; several retired municipal officials who he had contacted had refused due to the sensitive nature of the position. The last director of

648-506: The book Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung is mostly seen as a piece of nostalgia . Various editions are popular with some collectors, and rare and unusual printings command extremely high prices. It can be purchased at shops in Beijing, Shanghai, other major cities in China, as well as at some tourist attractions. The edition currently (2012) available (photo above) has a publication date of 1966. It has about thirty colour photographs at

684-401: The book were covered in cloth, silk, leather, paper, and other materials. Most editions were produced in a functional, compact size that fit into a pocket, were easy to carry, and could be taken out at any time "for practice, learning, application." It was published in 32 other common sizes, allegedly the largest format printed on only four pages as large as the newspaper Reference News , and

720-452: The ceremony was August 8, commemorating the 1966 decision of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party to launch the Cultural Revolution, which Peng in 2012 called a "disastrous day for China". The seventh annual ceremony in 2012 was attended by some 450 people. Due to the museum addressing a sensitive period of Chinese history, it advertised itself discreetly on the internet, other means not being allowed as of 2010. In 2013,

756-407: The construction, and inscriptions. The total funds raised by Peng amounted to over CN¥  10 million. The donors included many friends of Peng who were fellow survivors. In 2003, Peng received from a friend a copy of a book by Yang Kelin (杨克林) entitled Cultural Revolution Museum . The descriptions in the book served as a blueprint for the main museum building. On January 1, 2005, the museum

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792-486: The entrance of the museum bore an inscription of the official verdict of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) on the Cultural Revolution from 1981, which pronounced it to have been a "serious disaster to the party, the country and the people". Outside the museum was a large statue of Deng Xiaoping , a victim of the Cultural Revolution who later rose to condemn its excesses as Mao's successor. A quote of party secretary Ren which warned against allowing

828-554: The front. There are then another 378 pages with Traditional Chinese on the left pages and the English translation on the right pages. The English language edition has many spelling mistakes as well as other typographical errors on almost every page. Only the first 22 chapters are in this edition compared with 33 in the first Chinese and English editions. There is no Lin Biao page. Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung consists of 427 quotations, organized thematically into 33 chapters. It

864-442: The large numbers of Quotations from Chairman Mao . These include Selected Works of Mao Zedong (in four volumes, 2.875 million copies in 14 languages), Selected Articles of Mao Zedong (various editions totalling 252 million copies), single article books, and works of poetry. On 12 February 1979, the Publicity Department of the Chinese Communist Party ordered to stop publishing Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung . In 1966,

900-691: The last page, they listed the names of the publisher ( PLA General Political Department ) without an ISBN , the printer and distributor (both Xinhua Bookstore ), and the publication year. By May 1967, bookstores in 117 countries and territories around the world—including the United Kingdom , France , Spain , Japan , the Soviet Union , West Germany , Italy , Nepal , Indonesia , Philippines , Burma , Iran , various Arab and African nations and others—were distributing Mao's Quotations . Foreign presses operating in 20 countries contributed to

936-434: The main building were small monuments, commemorative steles and inscribed tombstones. These focused on the local victims of the Cultural Revolution, with one mural listing the names of more than 4,000 dead from the neighbouring villages. Another mural listed 304 types of counter-revolutionary crimes that a person could be charged with, among them being a "counter-revolutionary revisionist" or "bourgeois element". Coverage of

972-606: The museum was Du Xuping. In late April 2016 the museum was closed down, fenced off and all inscriptions, monuments, and more were covered up. The timing of the decision was seen by observers as being related to the impending 50-year anniversary of the May 16 Notification , considered widely to be the starting point of the Cultural Revolution. Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-tung ( simplified Chinese : 毛主席语录 ; traditional Chinese : 毛主席語錄 ; pinyin : Máo Zhǔxí Yǔlù )

1008-514: The park entrance contained a depiction of Ba Jin and described him as an "advocate" of the museum. The museum covered an area of approximately 570 square metres (6,100 sq ft), with its main building, a three-storey pavilion, designed to resemble the Temple of Heaven in Beijing. The main building housed hundreds of photos and drawings depicting events in the Cultural Revolution. It prominently featured Chairman Mao Zedong , who initiated

1044-402: The perpetrators was scant. The design of the monuments largely drew on premodern China. A graveyard adjacent to the museum grounds contains the remains of over 70 victims of the Cultural Revolution, including those who were beaten to death by rebel groups ; one of the graves contains the remains of 28 victims who could not be individually identified. Peng said he and others wanted to leave

1080-497: The publication of 20 translations in 35 versions. The Little Red Book has produced a wide array of sales and distribution figures. Some sources claim that over 6.5 billion printed volumes have been distributed in total, others contend that the distribution ran into the "billions", and others cite "over a billion" official volumes between 1966 and 1969 alone as well as "untold numbers of unofficial local reprints and unofficial translations." The book's popularity may be because it

1116-463: The slopes of Tashan Scenic Area . Having learned that these victims had died in 1967 and 1968 during the Cultural Revolution, he started his efforts to turn the park into a memorial site. He began by contacting other survivors of the Cultural Revolution, many of whom were government officials. Peng named the endeavor the Pagoda Park ( Chinese : 塔园 ) project, avoiding any reference to

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1152-409: The smallest format the size of a matchbox . Foreign press report called the work "The Little Red Book", reflecting its common small size and bright cover. After the Cultural Revolution ended, some Chinese people also adopted the nickname "Treasured Red Book" (simplified Chinese: 红宝书 ; traditional Chinese: 紅寶書 ; pinyin: hóng bǎoshū ), a term back-translated into Chinese. During

1188-460: The views of the deputies and compilers of the book, the work was expanded to address 25 topics with 267 quotations, and the title was changed simply to Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung . On 10 January, the work was re-issued to the delegates and sent to select units of the People's Liberation Army who received their advance copies for educating troops as well as for their comments. In May 1964,

1224-418: Was essentially an unofficial requirement for every Chinese citizen to own, to read, and to carry it at all times during the latter half of Mao's rule, especially during the Cultural Revolution . The most widely produced editions of the Quotations of Chairman Mao were published with a printed red vinyl cover wrapper over cardboard with pages bound in 64 folios that included photos of Mao. Other editions of

1260-487: Was officially opened as the first museum in China dedicated to the Cultural Revolution. Vice president of the Federation of Literary and Art Circles Feng Jicai attended. Chinese state media kept silent about the opening ceremony. The museum is regarded as the brainchild of reformist Guangdong party secretary Ren Zhongyi , with distinguished author Ba Jin also having been a major influence. A memorial space at

1296-640: Was the only memorial museum dedicated to the Cultural Revolution in Mainland China , located in the Tashan Scenic Area , Chenghai District , Shantou City . It was established by Peng Qi'an , the former vice mayor of Shantou, and opened in January 2005. It was dissolved in April 2016. In 1996, Peng Qi'an , a former vice mayor of Shantou , came across dozens of graves scattered around

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