History's Last Salvation
Three years ago, looters smashed through the wooden doors of a temple in Gong village and stole sacred bronze buddhas inside the 1,000-year-old heritage site. Now a village elder has bought a dog to scare off unwanted visitors. "Thieves have come 14 times in 11 years," says Chen Yan Wen, who is paid a small salary to guard the entrance. Even the stone statues that date back to the Tang Dynasty (618-906) are not safe from pick-ax pillagers. Today, the temple is boarded up.
Protecting China's old architecture is a race against time. Rapid development and demand from the antiques trade are destroying the last vestiges of ancient wood temples and homes in Shanxi province-buildings that, until now, survived because of their isolation. The former mansions in this northern region of China, a once-prosperous hub along the ancient trading route known as the Silk Road, lie in decay. What the older residents still value -- the terra-cotta roof tiles, latticed doors and courtyards -- are of little interest to their children, who want to sell out for a gleaming new apartment. Windows, doors, beams and roof tiles, torn from structures, make beautiful room dividers and wall hangings in New York lofts and Miami beach houses. The scavengers are circling.
Foguang Temple is one of the last remaining Tang Dynasty buildings.
Today, one of the few organizations standing between architectural extinction and salvation is Global Heritage Fund, a California-based nonprofit organization founded in 2001 by Jeff Morgan -- a Silicon Valley scion, and a 16-year veteran of that high-tech world himself -- and archaeological expert Ian Hodder.
Mr. Morgan, 43, switched careers after an old family friend, Steven McCormick, now the president and CEO of Nature Conservancy, suggested a job change. Having just cashed out of his second high-tech start-up, he took the advice to heart, launching this new venture that focuses on restoring endangered world heritage sites. In just four years, the organization has raised more than $5.2 million (plus an additional $4 million in matching funds from local governments) for 10 major sites world-wide, including the ruins of the Champa kingdom of the fourth to 13th centuries in My Son, Vietnam, and the ancient city of Kars, in Eastern Turkey, which dates back to the Ottoman Empire.
"I'm looking to start the next Machu Picchu or the next Angkor Wat. . . a place that has monumental architecture but has no investment, is not protected and the people haven't figured how to take advantage of it," says Mr. Morgan. "We are a fairly small outfit, but we are cherry picking the best [cultural heritage] sites in each country, which shows me just how bad the situation is," says Mr. Morgan.
The Unesco World Heritage Fund, which has a minuscule budget of $4 million, has identified more than 800 endangered world heritage sites, and there are hundreds more on the waiting list. But only a handful of organizations have targeted the architectural wonders of the world. GHF has carved out its own niche by working exclusively in the Third World at major cradles of civilization and target sites that can be developed for tourism. Other groups like World Monuments Fund do much of their work in Western Europe.
Although Guatemala's Mirador Basin, considered the cradle of Mayan civilization, is one of Global Heritage Fund's higher-profile projects, attracting donations from the likes of Hollywood heavyweight Mel Gibson, the organization is increasingly turning its gaze on the poor regions of Western China. The reason is two-fold. Not only has China asked Unesco to recognize more cultural sites than any other nation, but Global Heritage Fund has strong ties with Chinese-American philanthropists who have a cultural stake in preserving China's heritage. To mine such sentiment, the fund recently organized a tour to Shanxi to attract potential donors.
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For Betty Ko and Susan Tai, the promise of a financial pledge to the fund meant a one-week trip in Shanxi guided by Bill Wu, founder of the Chinese Culture Center in San Francisco, and many other perks, including a private tour of a provincial museum temporarily closed to the public and sumptuous meals with Chinese officials from the Cultural Relics Bureau. But best of all was the chance to personally select which temple their money would restore.
"There are so many things that need help and aren't getting it," says Ms. Ko -- the wife of Wen Ko, founder of the Taiwan-based venture capital company WK Technology Fund -- after visiting the 10th-century Zhenguo temple. Despite the temple's importance and bad state of disrepair, Ms. Ko rejects it as a funding option. The locals aren't investing in its preservation, which means there would be no natural local partner -- one of the foundation's requirements.
Next up: the Ming dynasty Shuang Lin Temple. Strolling inside its dark wooden cavity, Ms. Ko shakes her head at the dozens of dusty statues inside. The temple has survived wars and the Cultural Revolution. Beneath the dirt-encrusted walls, which once boasted political slogans, there are frescoes dating back to the 15th century. Armed with video cameras and flashlights, she and Ms. Tai, who works for the Santa Barbara Museum of Art, scrutinize the wall. Their host, Ren Yiming, director of preservation of Shanxi Institute Cultural Heritage Preservation, is trying to convince them that the old paintings can be recovered-with some financial assistance, of course.
The temple is one that the local government desperately wants to preserve, but Ms. Ko and Ms. Tai are more impressed by the Taoist Houtu Temple, in the town of Jiexiu. It features a massive theatrical stage and some of the oldest ceramic roof tiles in China. And there is another plus: The local officials have already developed a master plan to restore it. Ms. Tai is aware that her donation is a powerful incentive for local government to invest more money itself. "On one hand," she says, "they are very appreciative; but, on the other, we are slightly shaming them, so they will feel a responsibility to do it properly."
Pei Wei Dong, Houtu's site director, brings out lychees, plums, hot tea and the master plan for his guests. Ms. Tai and Ms. Ko literally roll up their sleeves and spend the next hour poring over the survey.
The Foguang Temple on Mount Wutai, a Tang dynasty architectural jewel from the ninth century, is a contender, too. There are only five Tang dynasty buildings left in the world: four in Shanxi province. Despite the fact that Global Heritage Fund donors helped raise $320,000 to restore part of the temple complex, and the provincial and central government matched funding, an additional $1 million is needed to complete that project, and two of the other Tang sites need immediate help as well. Saving the "Four Tangs" has a nice ring, and Ms. Ko, a collector of Tang era artifacts, is leaning toward funding this group of temples. At the end of the trip, both she and Ms. Tai pledge $50,000 toward the Tang project.
But Mr. Morgan isn't counting the Houtu site out just yet. Impressed with Mr. Pei's commitment, he's recommending to his board that the site be given funding to investigate the feasibility of project. "Without funds from foreign partners, it would be tough to preserve these temples," Mr. Pei says.
Ms. Mazurkewich is a writer based in Hong Kong.
山西古建筑：最后的拯救
三年前，抢劫者砸碎了山西平遥弓村一座有千年历史的古寺庙的木门，盗走了里面的青铜佛像。现在，村里拿出一点钱雇了一位老人看守寺庙，为吓唬那些可恶的盗窃者专门养了一条狗。这位名叫陈延文（音）的老人说，11年里这个庙被盗贼偷了14次，即使是那些唐代的石像也没能躲过盗贼的铁镐。如今，这座寺庙被用栅栏围了起来。
在中国，保护古建筑是件需要与时间赛跑的事。古董交易市场的发展以及需求的迅速增加使山西地方性建筑里仅剩的木结构古寺庙和古民居面临威胁，这些寺庙和民居此前因为处偏僻之地而得以幸存。在这个一度曾是古丝绸之路上商贾云集之地的中国北方省份，从前的许多大宅子如今十分破败地沉睡著。
陶瓦当、木格门窗还有庭院──上了岁数的人仍很喜爱的这些东西现在却丝毫引不起年轻人的兴趣，他们宁愿卖掉老房子换来住宅楼里的一套新单元。从老宅子里拆下来的窗扇、门、屋梁和瓦当却远渡重洋，在纽约艺术家的时尚居室或迈阿密的海滩豪宅里摇身一变成了漂亮的房间隔扇或墙上的挂饰。诱人的市场引得猎食者对它们虎视眈眈。
如今，有一些组织开始介入濒危古建筑的拯救工作，Global Heritage Fund就是其中之一。该基金是一家总部设在加利福尼亚的非盈利组织，由杰夫?摩根(Jeff Morgan)和考古学家伊恩?霍德(Ian Hodder)在2001年创建。摩根出身硅谷家庭，他本人也在高科技领域奋斗了16年。
但今年43岁的摩根在听取他们家族的老朋友、美国自然保护协会(Nature Conservancy)总裁兼首席执行长斯蒂文?麦克考密克(Steven McCormick)的建议后决定改变职业方向的。当时摩根刚刚从他的第二家高科技初创企业兑现退出，他仔细考虑了麦克考密克的建议，决定推出一家新的风险机构，专门从事世界濒危遗产地的修复重建工作。
四年后的今天，该组织已经为全球10处重要遗产地筹集了520多万美元（另外还从当地政府获得了400万美元配套资金）。这些遗产地包括越南美山的4-13世纪占婆王国遗址以及土耳其东部可追溯到奥特曼帝国时代的卡斯古城。
摩根说，他正在计划物色下一个类似马丘?比丘或吴哥窟那样的地方......这些地方应该有具有历史意义的建筑群、但却没有投资，尚未受到保护，而且人们不知道如何去发掘它们的价值。他说：我们是一支非常渺小的力量，但我们会精心挑选每个国家最有价值的、且现状很糟糕的文化遗产地。
预算规模仅400万美元的联合国教科文组织世界遗产基金会已在全世界确定了800处遗产地，另外还有数百处已申请遗产地的项目在等待批准。但只有少量组织将世界建筑古迹作为保护目标。而GHF更是独树一帜地将保护目标集中在第三世界国家，它们多在文明发源地寻找有可能开发成旅游项目的地区。其他像World Monuments Fund等组织则将目标区域主要对准西欧。
被视为古玛雅文明摇篮的危地马拉米拉德盆地是GHF投资的项目中备受瞩目的项目之一，好莱坞明星梅尔?吉布森(Mel Gibson)曾为该项目捐款，但GHF现在越来越多地将关注的目光转向中国西部贫困地区。
这不仅是因为中国政府向联合国申请的遗产地比其他国家多，而且GHF与华裔美籍慈善家有很紧密的联系，而这些人士非常关注保护中国的文化遗产。为充分发挥这种文化情结的能动性，基金会最近组织了一次山西之旅，以吸引更多的捐款人。
Betty Ko和Susan Tai参加了这次活动，在答应向基金会捐款后，他们参加了旧金山中国文化中心(Chinese Culture Center)创始人Bill Wu组织的这次为期一周的山西考察和其他许多额外的活动，比如参观一家暂停对公众开放的地方博物馆、出席有中国国家文物局(Cultural Relics Bureau)官员参加的宴会。但最难得的是，他们有机会亲自为他们的捐款挑选保护项目。
ko在参观了建于十世纪的镇国寺之后说，那里有许多事需要帮助，但是却得不到。Ko的丈夫是台湾风险投资公司普讯创业投资(WK Technology Fund)的创始人。
虽然这座寺庙有重要价值且目前的状况很差，但Ko还是不能选择它作为资助项目。当地没有人为其保护工作投入资金，这意味著如果选择它，基金会在当地没有现成的合作伙伴，这一点不符合基金会的要求。
他们又去了下一站：建于明代的双林寺。在寺里黑洞洞的木结构庙舍里走动时，Ko面对著几十座积满灰尘的塑像直摇头。这座寺庙在战争年代和文化大革命中侥幸保存下来。寺里黑乎乎的墙上曾书写著政治口号，不过在墙面下还保存著15世纪时的壁画。Ko和为圣巴巴拉艺术博物馆工作的Tai带著摄像机和闪光灯仔细审视墙面。带他们前来的山西文化遗产保护局(Shanxi Institute Cultural Heritage Preservation)保护所主任任一民（音）试图让他们相信，这些古老的壁画可以修复──当然，这需要资金支持。
这座寺庙是当地政府急切希望保护的项目之一，但Ko和Tai对位于介休市的道教后土庙更感兴趣。庙里有一个很大的戏台，建筑上用的陶瓦当是中国年代最久远的瓦当中的一种。另外还有一个有利因素，那就是当地官员已经制定了修复计划。Tai觉得自己的资金支持将能有力地推动当地政府投入更多资金。她说：一方面，他们对资金支援非常感谢，另一方面，我们也有点让他们感到难为情，所以他们会觉得有责任把事情做好。
负责管理后土庙的裴卫东（音）拿出荔枝、李子、热茶招待她们，还给她们看了总体修复计划。Tai和Ko非常认真地花了一个小时仔细研究规划图。
五台山上的佛光寺也是一个很有吸引力的赞助对象。该寺建于唐代，自公元九世纪以来就是寺庙建筑中的一颗明珠。世界上目前仅存五座唐代建筑，其中有四座在山西。
尽管GHF的捐赠人为修复这座寺庙的部分工程已筹集了320,000美元，当地和中央政府也相应拿出了一部分资金，但要完成工程还有100万美元的资金缺口。另外还有两座唐代建筑也急需资金支持。
拯救“唐朝四建筑”的想法听起来很有吸引力，喜爱收藏唐朝古董的Ko很倾向于将捐款投向这组寺庙。这次考察结束时，她和Tai承诺向唐代建筑修复工程捐赠50,000美元。
但摩根还没有彻底放弃后土庙。他被裴卫东对事业的执著所打动，于是向董事会建议拨出一部分资金对该项目的可行性进行调查。裴卫东说，如果没有外来资金的支持，要保护这些寺庙非常困难。
