Jackie Chan's planned ancient buildings donation sparks controversy

Related Reading:
>> Jackie Chan wants his old houses to go abroad
>> Jackie Chan's planned donation questioned

HEFEI, April 9 (Xinhua) -- "Nobody could rob relics from other countries and display them in his own museum," according to Asian Hawk, played by Jackie Chan, in his blockbuster movie "Chinese Zodiac."

It is therefore slightly ironic that the film icon plans to donate four ancient Chinese wooden buildings to a Singapore university.

In "Chinese Zodiac" which debuted in December, Chan successfully robs a French stately home of two ancient bronze heads of animal statues and returns them to China after a series of misadventures.

In real life, his planned donation of four Hui-style ancient buildings that he bought twenty years ago to the Singapore University of Technology and Design has aroused heated debate in China.

"In situ conservation is the best way to protecting the ancient buildings," said Cheng Jiyue, a registered architect and ancient architecture expert.

"The cultural values will disappear if they leave their original villages and rebuilt elsewhere," he added.

Chan wrote on April 4 on his official website as well as his microblog that he bought ten antique buildings, including a main hall, theatre stage and a pavilion, from east China's Anhui Province and transported them to Hong Kong where he initially wanted to refurbish them for his parents.

Jackie Chan stored the buildings in a warehouse where they became a source of food for termites after his parents passed away.

He decided to donate four of them to the Singapore university after failing to reach agreement with the Hong Kong government on allocation of land on where to put the buildings.

"These historical buildings are the essence of traditional Chinese architecture and I think it's such a waste if they're not displayed for people to appreciate.

"I felt so grateful after hearing about all the hard work they've put into these historical buildings. I was so moved that I actually considered donating the other six buildings to them as well," he wrote.

We recommend:
Beauties in China Fashion Week	Rare photos tell stories of Leslie Cheung	Sexy female stars with long legs
Bikini-clad girls move on Robstep	Beautiful actresses in TV series	Female star: Zhang Li in casual style
"Journey to the West" staged in NW China	Creative sculptures made of vegetables	Ten most beautiful islands on Earth