Amateur Collector Opens Individual ExhibitionAhmad Temur, an amateur collector in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, recently held an exhibition in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang displaying different pieces of art and collectibles.On display were more than 10,000 paintings and thousands of cultural objects he has accumulated over the past two decades or more. An eye-catching item was the 216 meter-long painting depicting peony blossoms, which has been listed in the Guinness Book of World Records. It was painted by an 80 year-old Chinese painter. "I wish my collection would set a new record in the Guinness Book of World Records," he said. Another piece at the exhibition that attracted a lot of attention was a float carrying a model of an electron-positron collider used during the National Day parade marking China's 50th founding anniversary. The collector bought it at a price of 340,000 yuan. He said he would present it to the Xinjiang Museum. Other items Ahmad Temur had collected include paintings of famous calligraphers and painters like Tang Ying, Zheng Xie(Banqiao), Qi Baishi, porcelain, money and stamps. Ahmad Temur was born into a farming family of Uygur nationality in Hami, Xinjiang. Since he graduated from South China Teacher's University in 1975 with a degree in history. Soon after graduation he started collecting cultural relics and set up his own company in 1985. "I have spent 100 million yuan purchasing cultural relics with the profits I earned from trading jewelry and fur products," he said. "I think every coin and painting reflect the brilliant culture of the Chinese nation." |
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