King Boat Cultural Museum

The Pingtung County King Boat Cultural Museum is Taiwan's first local cultural museum established with the theme of the 'Welcoming Kings' (Ying Wang) ceremony culture. Constructed in 2022, it officially opened in 2024. The entire museum showcases five major themes: 'Oceanic Beliefs,' 'Thousand-Year Lords' Tour' (Qiansui Xunshou), 'Pingtung Tour,' 'Crafting the Divine Vessel,' and 'Dōnggǎng Welcoming Kings' (Dōnggǎng Ying Wang). It also houses a King Boat meticulously crafted by local national treasure-level masters, offering an immersive experience to understand the historical context and artisanal heritage of King Boats up close. The main building is designed with the imagery of a ship and the ocean, connecting with Dōnggǎng's local characteristics. It incorporates natural ventilation and shading systems to reduce energy consumption, making it a sustainable, 'breathing' building. 1F Oceanic Beliefs: Why 'Send Off the Kings' (Song Wang)? An immersive theater production, 'The Long River of Life,' unravels the historical origins of the Welcoming Kings' Peace Ceremony and King Boats. Look up to behold a magnificent, giant King Boat, lavishly painted, its dimensions comparable to a small tuna fishing vessel. This is a testament to the craftsmanship of shipbuilders from Dōnggǎng and Liúqiú Island. The Dōnggǎng King Boat fully embodies an aesthetic unique to Dōnggǎng's Welcoming Kings' beliefs, distinct from other regions. Following this, 'The Long River of Life' immersive theater production further unveils the historical origins of the Welcoming Kings' Peace Ceremony and King Boats. 2F Thousand-Year Lords' Tour: King Boat culture has a long history of development in Taiwan. Through five major national-level intangible folk cultural assets—the Nánkūnshēn Drifting King Boat, the Mǎmíngshān Five-Year Qiansui Grand Ceremony, the Xīgǎng Jiàxiāng, Tainan's Thirteen Cabins, the Three Major Temples of the Nánguān Line, and the Dōnggǎng Welcoming Kings' Peace Ceremony—visitors can understand the evolution of Taiwan's King Boats and overseas King Boat culture. Additionally, the 'Kings' Tour of Kun Island' interactive map will guide you to discover the cultural network of Wángyé (Lord-King) beliefs across Taiwan. 3F Pingtung Tour - Crafting the Divine Vessel: Welcoming Kings ceremonies in Northern and Southern Pingtung are vastly different! Due to diverse local customs throughout Pingtung County, each region has developed its own unique Welcoming Kings ceremonies. The museum's King Boat allows for a close-up appreciation of its intricate carvings and lavishly painted traditional craftsmanship. Unlike the King Boat of Dōnglóng Temple in Dōnggǎng, the paintings on this one replace the Eight Immortals' mounts with Dōnggǎng's aquatic creatures, such as bluefin tuna, marlin, and shrimp, offering a unique beauty to admire up close. The walls also display the current-scale blueprints left by the shipbuilders for this King Boat, which they used to construct it. This traditional wooden fishing boat building technique, performed once every three years for the Dōnggǎng Welcoming Kings' ceremony, has been inadvertently preserved through continuous practice to this day. 4F Dōnggǎng Welcoming Kings: The Dōnggǎng Welcoming Kings' Peace Ceremony, held once every three years, still adheres strictly to ancient rituals and protocols. Local residents, in anticipation of the arrival of the Qiansui Lords (acting as Imperial Inspectors on behalf of Heaven), mobilize nearly the entire town. Furthermore, the 'Seven Jiaotou' palanquin bearers are particularly distinctive, with their roles passed down from father to son, generation after generation, holding a crucial position in Taiwan's Wángyé beliefs and ceremonial culture.