Open Daily | Central Park West at 79th Street | New York City

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Find out more about the range of programs offered at the Museum, including talks, tastings, nature walks, courses, festivals, and more:

amnh.org/calendar

Celebrate Culture!

Spotlight Asia is made possible in part by the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew Cuomo and the New York State Legislature. Additional support is provided by the May and Samuel Rudin Family Foundation, Inc., the Sidney, Milton and Leoma Simon Foundation, the family of Frederick H. Leonhardt, and The Max and Victoria Dreyfus Foundation.

Special thanks to the Ford Foundation.

Special Thanks: Columbia University: Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures; Ganz; The Institute for Vietnamese Culture & Education; Jim Henson Foundation; The Korea Society; Panthera; Snow Leopard Trust; and the World Wildlife Fund.

PHOTO CREDITS

Shadow figure from the Pauline Benton Collection (circa 1934), courtesy of Chinese Theatre Works. Photo: Stephen Kaplin

Snow Leopards: Snow Leopard Trust / Peter Bolliger

Siberian Tiger: AMNH/C. Chesek

Maria Yun: A.a. Roca

Laurel Kendall: AMNH / D. Finin

The Institute for Vietnamese Culture & Education: AMNH / R. Mickens

Saung Budaya: Iin Cox

Sonny Singh, Shruti Parekh

SPOTLIGHT ASIA: BIG CATSSaturday, May 23 | Noon–5 pm | Milstein Hall of Ocean LifeFREE FOR MEMBERS OR WITH MUSEUM ADMISSION

NOON–5 PM | FUN GIVEAWAYSSignup to win giveaways, including free admission passes to the exhibition Life of Cats: Selections from the Hiraki Ukiyo-e Collection at the Japan Society; a snow leopard plush toy that helps protect a snow leopard cub living in the wild; and a giant, lovable play lion!

NOON–4 PM | ACTIVITIES • Explore a Vietnamese tiger lantern

display and try your hand at Dông Ho woodcut painting.

• Meet the scientists! Selected artists and scientists team up to offer you tours of the Halls of Biodiversity and Asian Mammals at 1 pm and 3 pm.

• Create your own cheetah mosaic with international artist Haifa Bint-Kadi.

• Design a tiger shadow puppet with Chinese Theatre Works at 2:30 pm.

• Take part in an exciting new Museum project featuring fascinating objects from the Asian collections.

• Play snow leopard games with Mongolia Connections, the Bhutan Foundation, and Tibet House US!

• Paint your own tiger minhwa, or folk painting, in the Korean traditional style!

• Create an assortment of big cat ornaments with volunteers from the Japan Society and OrigamiUSA.

CONNECT ONLINETag @amnh on your Twitter and Instagram posts today!

SPOTLIGHT ASIA: BIG CATS TODAY’S SCHEDULE

Fondly known as a “mountain ghost,” the snow leopard (Panthera uncia) is one of Earth’s most elusive creatures. Many Buddhists consider snow leopards, and their natural habitat, holy. Snow leopards are primarily found in rugged and steep rocky areas of Afghanistan, Bhutan, China, India, Mongolia, and a select few other countries in Asia.

ABOUT BIG CATS Across Asia, big cats hold tremendous cultural significance. They represent a unique intersection between nature and culture, and between tradition and contemporary practice. The five members of the genus Panthera include the tiger, lion, jaguar, leopard, and snow leopard. Cats in the Panthera genus are the only animals able to roar (though some call the snow leopard’s call a “chuff”).

The tiger (Panthera tigris), Asia’s king of the jungle, has been particularly important in Asian cultures. This big cat has inspired legendary songs and poems, been designated the official animal of four Asian nations, and even served as the mascot for the 1988 Summer Olympics in South Korea. Throughout the Asian continent, tigers continue to inspire the imaginations of the many peoples who have lived among them. These complex, sometimes contradictory relationships with the tiger—that encompass fear, admiration, and even humor—emerge in artwork, cultural practices, and religious beliefs.

Now, however, the big cats of Asia are quickly disappearing. Today, the Museum takes a look at the important cultural role big cats have played across the Asian continent and explore what still needs to be done to ensure these legendary animals’ survival.

1:15 PM Chinese Theatre Works artfully fuses traditional Chinese and contemporary Western shadow puppet theater techniques. Drawing from Chinese history, folk tales, and literature, “Tiger Tales” is narrated by a wise old rabbit, telling stories to her young granddaughter. Workshop to follow.

2:15 PM | TIGERS THEN AND NOW Of all the big cats, tigers are closest to extinction. Just over 100 years ago, there were as many as 100,000 wild tigers living in Asia. Today, there are fewer than 3,200. The tiger survival imperative brings together three experts from diverse fields who look to the past and present to help move us forward as we think about how the tiger and its habitats have become increasingly important for a brighter future. This special presentation features Museum Curator of Asian Ethnology and Anthropology Division Chair Laurel Kendall, Director of the Sackler Institute for Comparative Genomics George Amato, and the Executive Director of the Bhutan Foundation Tshewang Wangchuk. Q&A session to follow.

3 PM Couture roars onto the stage with tiger-detailed Vietnamese Ao Dai costumery, especially designed for today’s big cat program by international designer Thuan Viet of Ho Chi Minh City.

3:45 PM Saung Budaya Dance Group will perform the exciting Indonesian Tari Topeng Blantek (mask) dance from Jakarta, followed by a dance based on the traditional style of martial arts from West Sumatra called the Silek Harimau Tuo, inspired by the strength of the tiger and accompanied by live musicians. Let your inner tiger out as the ensemble teaches you Silek Harimau Tuo movements from stage.

4:30PM Host Sonny Singh, with Sri Lankan-born, Thailand-raised DJ Ushka, concludes the festivities with a big cat-style dance party!

PERFORMANCES Hosted by Sonny Singh, pioneering Musician-Activist

NOON In honor of the snow leopard, or “jewel of the mountains” (Gangzig), the event opens with traditional animal masked dances (Chham) from the Himalayan Kingdom of Bhutan, the small country that is home to almost a third of the total species of wild cats in the world.

12:45 PM Master storyteller Maria Yoon weaves legends of her youth in Korea, where the once-numerous Siberian tiger reigned as king. Composer-pianist Paul Yeon Lee, joined by daegeum bamboo transverse flute player Tae-seog Yun, complements the story with an original score.

Siberian tiger

FIND BIG CATS ON THE 1ST FLOOR BIG CAT FUN FACTS

JAGUAR (PANTHERA ONCA)

Bernard Family Hall of North American Mammals

Jaguars can be distinguished from other big cats by the shape of their spots. The spots resemble roses, and as such are known as rosettes.

Jaguars have incredibly powerful jaws and the most powerful bite of all the big cats relative to their weight, with a bite force of 2,000 pounds. This is strong enough to pierce a skull or crack a sea turtle’s shell. They are fearsome predators and will hunt anything from frogs, fish, and reptiles to deer, tapirs, and cattle.

The jaguar ancestor orginates in Asia.

MOUNTAIN LION (PUMA CONCOLOR)

Bernard Family Hall of North American Mammals

Known as the “American lion”, mountain lions are also known as pumas, cougars, panthers, catamounts, and the “tigre.” They hold the Guiness World Record for the animal with the greatest number of common names, with over 40 in the English language alone.

Mountain lions are most closely related to the modern cheetah of Africa and western Asia.

TIGER (PANTHERA TIGRIS)

Hall of Biodiversity

The tiger’s stripes can be also found on their skin. The distinct stripe pattern would still be visible if you were to shave a tiger.

Tigers are known for their exceptional power and their ability to move a carcass that is several times heavier than they are. In Myanmar, a tiger was recorded moving a gaur bull that weighed 770 kg, even though 13 men had been unable to move the carcass a single yard.

SNOW LEOPARD (PANTHERA UNCIA)

Fondly known as a “mountain ghost,” the snow leopard is one of the most elusive creatures on the planet.

Snow leopards make sounds similar to those made by other large cats, including a purr, mew, hiss, growl, moan, and yowl. However, snow leopards cannot roar due to the physiology of their throat, and instead make a non-aggressive puffing sound called a “chuff.”

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Spitzer Hall of Human

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Sackler Educational Laboratory

Rose Gallery

Heilbrunn Cosmic

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Gottesman Hall Of Planet Earth

Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Hall

Warburg Hall of

New York State

Environment

Small Mammals

Northwest Coast Indians

Discovery Room

Lefrak Theater

North American

Forests

Parking Garage

Linder Theater

Dana Education Wing

Weston PavilionKaufmann

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Morgan Memorial

Hall of Gems

Guggenheim Hall of MineralsRoss Hall of

Meteorites

Natural Histories

Grand Gallery

Rose Center for Earth and Space

Hall of Biodiversity

Milstein Hall of Ocean Life

Bernard Family Hall of North

American Mammals

FIND BIG CATS ON THE 2ND FLOOR BIG CAT FUN FACTS

CHEETAH (ACINONYX JUBATUS)

Akeley Hall of African Mammals

The cheetah is the fastest land animal, and can run as fast as 70 mph. It can reach this amazing top speed in as little as three seconds!

Cheetahs are great at getting by with little water. They only need to have a drink every three or four days.

LEOPARD (PANTHERA PARDUS)

Akeley Hall of African Mammals Hall of Asian Mammals

Leopards have vanished from almost 40 percent of their historic range in Africa, and from over 50 percent of their historic range in Asia.

Some people believe that the bones and whiskers of leopards can heal sick people. Many leopards are killed each year for their fur and body parts, and this is one reason why the leopard is a threatened species.

LION (PANTHERA LEO)

Akeley Hall of African Mammals Hall of Asian Mammals

Lions have vanished from approximately 80 percent of their historic range. Today, they dwell in 28 African countries, but only one Asian country: India, where they still live in the Gir National Forest.

The island nation of Singapore (Singapura) derives its name from the Malay words singa (lion) and pura (city). Today’s program host Sonny Singh’s last name means LION!

A lion’s roar can be heard as far as five miles (eight kilometers) away.

TIGER (PANTHERA TIGRIS)

Hall of Asian Mammals Stout Hall of Asian Peoples

Just over 100 years ago, there were as many as 100,000 wild tigers living in Asia. Today, there are fewer than 3,200.

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Birds of the World

Hayden Big Bang Theater

Scales of the Universe

Theodore Roosevelt Rotunda

The Butterfly Conservatory

Countdown to Zero

Rose Center for Earth and Space

Stout Hall of Asian

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Asian Mammals

Akeley Hall of African

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