Recently I have been thinking that the Nationalists were not the only ones who made a decent effort to protect China's cultural treasures. After having moved the treasures across China to prevent Japanese possession of them, the KMT selected the best of the best in the imperial collection and transported them abroad three ships, one of them being the Kunlun, to Taiwan.

Even to this day, some of the objects in the collection have never been shown to the public. Instead they are stored in underground vaults tucked deep into the mountain. The air in those vaults are carefully monitored to ensure a suitable temperature. Objects are never shown with other relics at the same time. They are carefully rotated between exhibitions due to fragility issues.

During the Cultural Revolution, the Red Guards were threatening the Forbidden City. They were on the verge of entering when Zhou Enlai called in the army and blocked their entrance into the Forbidden City. As a result of Zhou's action, the objects in Beijing's National Palace Museum were spared destruction from the Red Guards. Zhou protected the Mogao cave murals in Dunhuang from the Red Guards as well.

These actions by Zhou were ironic considering that he was not an art connoisseur. Yet his rationality and moderate character led him to take these actions. In contrast Kang Sheng, who was an arts enthusiast, painter, and calligrapher, used his power to embezzle valuable antiques from museums during the Cultural Revolution. Most of these objects were never returned.

The Lingyin Temple in Hangzhou were also threatened by the Red Guards, until Zhou stationed troops in front of the temple to prevent its destruction.