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The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) unveils the bust of Professor Jao Tsung-i today (12 November) on its campus. The unveiling ceremony was officiated by Professor the Honourable Jao Tsung-i, GBM, Wei Lun Honorary Professor of Fine Arts at CUHK; Professor Wu Weishan, Director, China Sculpture Academy of the Chinese National Academy of Arts; and CUHK Vice-Chancellor Professor Lawrence J. Lau.

CUHK is much indebted to Professor Jao Tsung-i for generously donating his bust to the University. To show its appreciation, the bust will be placed at the University Library. The bust is sculpted by Professor Wu Weishan, a celebrated artist who was awarded the prestigious Pangolin Prize by the Royal British Society of Sculptors, which also elected him a Fellow (FRBS). He has made sculptures of numerous great men in China, such as Choh-Ming Li, Qi Baishi, Lin Fengmian, Fei Xiaotong and Yang Chen-ning etc.

Professor Lawrence J. Lau thanked Professor Jao for his gift. ‘The Chinese University is honoured to have a long and close association with Professor Jao for more than three decades. To pay tribute to his contributions, the bust of Professor Jao will stand at the University Library from now on. On behalf of the Chinese University, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to Professor Jao for his loving care and support for the University. We hope to continue benefit from his wisdom and guidance in the future.’

Situated at the University Library, Professor Jao’s bust stands just across from the bust of Dante Alighieri donated by the Italian Government. Professor Jao has long been fond of Dante. In 1958, Professor Jao revisited Dante’s tomb in Italy and wrote a long poem in memory of the Italian poet. Professor Jao is pleased to see his bust being placed opposite to Dante’s. ‘I can engage in a conversation with Dante now,’ he quipped.

In celebration of the unveiling of the bust, Professor Richard Ho, Honorary Professor, Department of Chinese Language and Literature at CUHK, has penned and autographed a tribute to Professor Jao which is placed behind his bust, just as Professor Jao’s poem for Dante is placed behind Dante’s bust. Being a place for knowledge-seeking, the University Library is the most appropriate place for the two great philosophers to meet. With their busts erected at the University Library, CUHK students will forever be encouraged in their quest for knowledge.

Professor Jao Tsung-i is a world-renowned sinologist. He has engaged himself in the study of a broad spectrum of disciplines traversing the east and the west, the ancient and the modern. His expertise covers ancient philology, Dunhuang studies, archaeology, the study of ancient bronze and stone inscriptions, history, classical literature, the study of ci, historical musicology, the history of fine arts, the history of Sino-Indian relationship, the history of religions, the study of Chu Ci, literary bibliography as well as regional historiography. He has published a number of significant works on these topics, there being over eighty specialist books, and over five hundred learned theses to his credit. In the past three decades, Professor Jao has dedicated to the study of recently discovered artifacts and ancient history, and continued to make significant advancements. He also set up the Computerised Database of Excavated Wood/Bamboo and Silk Scripts of China and the Computerised Database of Oracular Inscriptions on Tortoise Shells and Bones at CUHK, in which modern scientific technology is used to excellent effect in manifesting traditional culture for the better understanding of all.

Professor Jao Tsung-i is, by common consent in academe, a sinologist of the highest rank in his own right, and a venerated pioneer in the field. He has received numerous prestigious awards and honours over the years, such as the Prix Stanislas Julien from the Institute de France, Honorary Membership of the Société Asiatique in France, an Honorary Doctor of Letters degree from the Ēcole Pratique des Hautes Ētudes of France, being the first Chinese to receive such an honour in humanities from that institution. He also received a special prize from the Cultural Heritage Bureau and the People’s Government of Gansu for the protection of Dunhuang relics, a Grand Bauhinia Medal from the Hong Kong Government, as well as a lifetime award for achievement in the arts from the Hong Kong Arts Development Council.

Professor Jao has been actively associated with CUHK for over three decades. In 1973, he joined CUHK as the Chair of Chinese and the Chairman of the Chinese Department. Upon his retirement, he became Honorary Professor in Fine Arts and Emeritus Professor in Chinese Language and Literature at the Institute of Chinese Studies. He is currently Wei Lun Honorary Professor of Fine Arts at CUHK. Over the years, he has generously donated his calligraphy and paintings to the University and provided invaluable advice on promoting academic development at the University. In 2003, Professor Jao was conferred a Doctor of Literature, honoris causa, by CUHK.