Origins
Chinese heritage constitutes a significant part of the town of Bendigo's cultural identity. The goldrush saw thousands of Chinese migrate to Bendigo in the latter half of the 19th century. The Chinese formed their own community and began raising money for charities. In the 1870s, the local Chinese were invited to take part in the annual Easter festival. The Bendigo Chinese saw this as a chance to become a part of the wider community. The elders of the region raised 750 Pounds by placing a levy on all Chinese. This money was used to purchase extravagant costumes and regalia. These costumes form the basis of the museum's collection and are well preserved garments, made from silk and gold bullion thread.
Read more about this topic: Golden Dragon Museum
Famous quotes containing the word origins:
“Compare the history of the novel to that of rock ‘n’ roll. Both started out a minority taste, became a mass taste, and then splintered into several subgenres. Both have been the typical cultural expressions of classes and epochs. Both started out aggressively fighting for their share of attention, novels attacking the drama, the tract, and the poem, rock attacking jazz and pop and rolling over classical music.”
—W. T. Lhamon, U.S. educator, critic. “Material Differences,” Deliberate Speed: The Origins of a Cultural Style in the American 1950s, Smithsonian (1990)
“Lucretius
Sings his great theory of natural origins and of wise conduct; Plato
smiling carves dreams, bright cells
Of incorruptible wax to hive the Greek honey.”
—Robinson Jeffers (1887–1962)
“The origins of clothing are not practical. They are mystical and erotic. The primitive man in the wolf-pelt was not keeping dry; he was saying: “Look what I killed. Aren’t I the best?””
—Katharine Hamnett (b. 1948)