Bulletin Autumn‧Winter 1997

been left free t o develop i n its o w n direction, and each has since grown into a unique institution. The ICSJournal was soon able to establish itself as a major publication for Chinese history, literature and philology, mainly t h r ough the suppor t of many illustrious contributors both w i t h i n and outside the University. It took a much longer time and the generous support of many donors for the Art Museum to build up its collection of over seven thousand fine items of Chinese paintings, calligraphy and artifacts, and earn its reputation as the University's 'crown jewel'. Now one of the most active institutions of its kind, it holds special exhibitions in cooperation w i t h leading museums on the mainland and even overseas museums several times a year, and publishes carefully researched, high-quality catalogues on each occasion. Nor has Renditions been left behind. Th r ough unstinting hard work over a quarter of a century, it has earned international repute as one of the top translation journals in the w o r l d , and its articles and r e l a t ed publications are widely used as instruction materials for Asian studies throughout the English speaking world. Making Steady Progress When Prof. Ma Lin took over as the vice-chancellor in 1978, he did not hesitate to continue Dr. Li's commitment to ICS, although he had been a biochemist by profession. Hence the next decade saw two more components being added to ICS ： the Centre for Chinese Archaeology and Art in 1978, and the Chinese Language Research Centre in 1980. During the same perio d several endowmen t s and pub l i c a t i o n revolving funds were established, giving the institute a much greater degree of flexibility in resource allocation and the kind of work it chose to pursue. The institute was further strengthened through the appointment of a number of permanent staff members, including renowned scholars like Cheng Te- k ' u n the archaeologist, D.C. Lau the philologist and translator, and Jao Tsung-i the classicist, historian and paleographer, as well as younger scholars like Kao Mayching, who took over the directorship of the Art Museum in 1981. Thus a solid foundation had been laid, and ICS was poised for the next stage of development when I joined it in 1986. The Burgeoning Decade ICS has been exceedingly lucky during the past decade, when it surged forward in activity and struck out in new directions. First, Prof. Charles Kao w h o succeeded Ma Lin in 1987 had the same commitment to developing Chinese studies as his predecessors, and gave the institute every opportunity of proving itself. Vice-chancellor Ma Lin (front row, right 1) together with Dr. J.S. Lee (front row, left 2) and the new curator Dr. Kao Mayching (front row, left 1) at the inauguration of the Friends of the Art Gallery (now the Museum) in 1981. Chinese University Bulletin Autumn • Winter 1997 8