Pao Yue-kong Library, Campus Collections, and the HKPM×PolyU Silk Research Centre

The Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) library system centres on a single entity: the Pao Yue-kong Library. Situated at the heart of the Hung Hom campus, it is a central library built for an applied comprehensive university, with collections weighted towards PolyU's strongest disciplines — engineering, design, hotel and tourism, nursing, and business. This article focuses on the library's history, naming, collection size, and special collections. PolyU does not have an independent public museum comparable to CUHK's Art Museum; campus-based displays are largely channelled through the library's digital collections, university archives, and exhibitions run by the School of Design. These are covered in the "on-campus exhibitions and museums" section, which also explicitly flags items that could not be verified. A dedicated section at the end covers the joint Chinese silk/textile research centre set up by PolyU and the Hong Kong Palace Museum.

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# 1. Library History and Naming

# 1.1 From Hong Kong Polytechnic Library to Pao Yue-kong Library

The PolyU Library evolved in step with the institution's own upgrading. The English Wikipedia entry for "Pao Yue-kong Library" provides a timeline consistent with the library's own published information:

# 1.2 The Namesakes: Yue-Kong Pao and Pao Siu-loong

Sir Yue-Kong Pao (包玉剛, 1918–1991), whose ancestral home was Zhenhai, Ningbo, Zhejiang, was a major 20th-century Chinese shipping magnate. The Worldwide Shipping Group he founded was at one point the world's largest privately owned fleet. The PolyU Library was named after him in 1995 in recognition of the Pao family's donation (per the English Wikipedia entry for "Pao Yue-kong Library").

Pao Siu-loong (包兆龍, 1900–1982) was Sir Yue-Kong Pao's father. Within the donation naming systems of several Hong Kong universities, the Pao family often used "Yue-Kong Pao" and "Pao Siu-loong" to name different facilities (for example, the University of Hong Kong's "Pao Siu Loong Building" and Shanghai Jiao Tong University's "Pao Siu-loong Library").

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# 2. Building and Facilities

Per the English Wikipedia entry for "Pao Yue-kong Library" (consistent with the library's own published information):

Collections are distributed across several floors (per the library's collections page^※): library books are held on 6/F, 5/F, 4/F, 3/F, and G/F; serials (journals, newspapers) are on G/F; audio-visual materials, course reserve items, and 7-day loan items are on P/F; there are also dedicated Standards and University collections, and a Remote Store for low-use materials.

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# 3. Collection Size (Facts & Figures 2024/25)

The figures below are taken from the library's official Facts & Figures page (2024/25 reporting year), verified June 2026.

Per the Pao Yue-kong Library Facts & Figures page^※:

Non-book materials (same page):

Scope note: PolyU's collections are overwhelmingly electronic — over 8.1 million e-books and over 250,000 e-journal titles, far exceeding the physical volumes in the library (approx. 1.1 million). The "Total Library Holdings" figure of 10,284,711 is the aggregated total explicitly given on that page, encompassing all the print, electronic, and audio-visual materials listed above. Figures fluctuate year to year; always check the year when citing.

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# 4. Special Collections and Digital Collections

PolyU Library's special collections are not as extensive as those of older comprehensive universities, but they hold distinctive local and institutional materials — particularly in Cantonese popular culture, oral history, and university archives — much of which is accessible through digital platforms.

# 4.1 Rare Books and University Collection

• Rare Book Collection: Preserves valuable and rare books written in Chinese or Western languages, mostly irreplaceable, scarce, or unique items of research value (per the library's Rare Book Collection page^※). The Digital Collections Portal also includes a dedicated "Rare Books on China and East Asia" collection (per the library's digital collections page).
• University Collection: Holds historical materials documenting the university's development, as well as publications from academic, research, and administrative units, and individual staff members (per the library's University Collection page^※).

# 4.2 Digital Collections Portal

According to the library's digital collections page^※, the Digital Collections Portal provides access to special collection rare books, lyric manuscripts, oral history interviews, and digital humanities projects. Notable highlights include:

• Cheng Kok-kong's Lyric Manuscript Collection (Cheng Kok-kong's Lyric Manuscript^※): Holds original lyric manuscripts by the renowned Cantopop lyricist Cheng Kok-kong (鄭國江, b. 1944), whose representative works include countless well-known Cantonese songs such as "Tomorrow Is Another Day" and "Chance Encounter". Cheng was one of the defining lyricists of Cantopop's golden age in the 1970s–80s. This collection has digitised his manuscripts and made them searchable and viewable through the Digital Collections Portal, offering invaluable primary material for research into Hong Kong's local popular culture history. It resonates with the School of Design and Faculty of Humanities' interest in local popular culture studies.
• Oral History Interviews: One of the digital humanities projects, containing oral history audio recordings and interviews.
• Digital Image Database and other digital humanities projects.

# 4.3 Institutional Repository: PolyU Institutional Research Archive (PIRA)

PIRA (PolyU Institutional Research Archive) is an online platform that actively collects and disseminates the research and scholarly output of the PolyU community. According to the library's collections page^※, it holds over 64,000 journal articles and conference papers published by PolyU staff, and complies with the Research Grants Council (RGC) "Open Access Policy" archiving requirements — the RGC requires that journal papers from funded research be uploaded in an open-access version within 12 months of publication. This enhances the global visibility and citation rates of PolyU's research and provides a free search channel for external researchers. The portal also houses:

• e-Theses: Full-image access to university doctoral and master's theses.
• Outstanding Work by Students: A collection of award-winning or socially impactful outstanding student work from various disciplines.
• Digital Collections Portal (see above).

For the broader picture of PolyU's publishing and academic journal editorial involvement (PolyU Press, external journals edited by faculty, etc.), see the article on publishing, academic journals, digital education, and IT; it is not repeated here.

# 4.4 Special Collection Provenance: East Asian Rarities 1704–1922 and the Hong Kong Photography Collection

Within the Rare Book Collection is a body of rare works about China and East Asia, primarily published in Western countries between 1704 and 1922. These volumes record how the Western world understood and represented China and East Asia from the early 18th to the early 20th century, holding particular value for research into Sino-Western exchange, sinology, and the history of publishing. The library has been continuously digitising these rare books and making them available to researchers through the Digital Collections Portal.

The library is also advancing the "Hong Kong Photography Collection" project. According to the library newsletter^※, the project aims to photograph and preserve images of Hong Kong's iconic buildings and neighbourhoods, documenting the city's transformation since the 1990s. This project takes the Pao Yue-kong Library beyond the university library's core mission, giving it a public role in local cultural heritage preservation. It also aligns with the urban concern of PolyU's design and architecture disciplines — in a Hong Kong undergoing rapid redevelopment, where many 1990s buildings and streetscapes have already disappeared, the university library's systematic archiving of these images is a low-key but important act of cultural preservation.

The Digital Collections Portal was launched in 2020^※, bringing together the library's digitised special collections and local cultural holdings. The library also provides access to international art image resources such as the ARTstor Digital Library^※, pooling contributions from museums, photographers, scholars, and artists worldwide.

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# 5. On-Campus Exhibitions and Museums

# 5.1 Current Situation

PolyU does not have an independent, named public museum centred on Chinese antiquities, of the kind represented by the CUHK Art Museum or the HKU Museum and Art Gallery. Its on-campus exhibition and cultural spaces are primarily expressed through:

• The library's digital collections and university archives (see Section 4), accessible via the digital portal and University Collection;
• Design, textile, and fashion-related exhibitions: PolyU is home to the School of Design and the School of Fashion and Textiles (per PolyU Scholars Hub^※), which regularly hold exhibitions of staff and student work. However, these exhibitions tend to be irregular, hosted in school spaces, and no publicly available information indicates they operate as a permanent, named "museum".

# 5.2 Items Not Found / Not Applicable

• Independent public museum / antiquities museum: Not found (the "antiquities museum" model does not apply to PolyU).
• Permanent textile / design museum: No official information found confirming the existence of an independent, permanently named museum. Relevant collections and displays are distributed across teaching and exhibition activities in the School of Fashion and Textiles and the School of Design. This article defers to verifiable information and does not speculate on scale.
• University history room: PolyU has a "University Collection" and digital university history materials, but no clearly identified official page has been found for a dedicated physical "university history room/gallery" permanently open to the public. Therefore, only the library's "University Collection" is reported as verified; the existence of a physical "university history room" is pending verification.

For all items marked "not found" or "pending verification" above, public searches could not directly confirm them. In keeping with this site's discipline, these are explicitly flagged; their existence is not assumed, nor are their scale or holdings fabricated.

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# 6. Library Service System

# 6.1 Borrowing and Reference Services

Per the library services page^※, the Pao Yue-kong Library provides:

• Borrowing services: Loan quotas and periods differ for undergraduates, postgraduates, and staff.
• Interlibrary Loan / Document Delivery (ILL/DD): Materials from other libraries are obtained through a joint resource-sharing agreement with Hong Kong's eight UGC-funded university libraries and international ILL networks.
• Reference enquiry services: Librarians provide subject-specific reference support, including reservable "research consultations".
• Course Reserve: Teaching staff can designate specific chapters for upload to the course platform or placement on short-term loan shelves.

# 6.2 Research Support Services

In recent years, the Pao Yue-kong Library has significantly developed its "research support" function, responding to PolyU's growing research intensity:

• Research data management training: Assists postgraduates and staff with managing research data in compliance with RGC and journal requirements.
• Research impact and citation analysis: Provides training on databases such as Clarivate's Web of Science and Scopus, helping authors track citations and H-index.
• Open Access support: Assists with uploading research outputs to PIRA to comply with open access (OA) publishing policies.
• Subject Librarians: Dedicated liaison librarians are assigned to each faculty/school, providing discipline-specific literature search support.

# 6.3 Learning Spaces and Facilities

The library extension and revitalisation project completed in 2022 significantly improved the learning experience:

• 6/F Extension: Designed around skylight illumination, providing spacious areas for self-study and discussion.
• Maker Space: Some floors include support facilities such as media production and 3D printing.
• 24-Hour Study Room: Available for students needing overnight study.
• Group Discussion Rooms: Bookable, enclosed small-group discussion rooms.
• Accessibility: The library has lifts, accessible entrances, and services for special needs.
• Silent zones / quiet reading areas: Floors are zoned to separate discussion and quiet reading environments.

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# 7. The Library's "Applied Disciplines" Collection Focus

The PolyU Library is not defined by broad humanities holdings, but rather centres its collection on applied disciplines:

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# 8. The 2022 Extension and Revitalisation Project (Award-Winning Case)

According to the Wikipedia entry for "Pao Yue-kong Library"^※, the library's "Extension and Revitalisation Project" won a 2022 "Best of Design Award" from The Architect's Newspaper — an annual best-design recognition from an international architecture media outlet.

The project's design features include:

• 6/F extension (above 5/F): Added a floor atop the original six-storey structure, centred on skylights and an open platform.
• Indoor-outdoor integration: Connects an adjacent outdoor platform with the 6/F interior, creating a semi-open learning environment rare on campus.
• Sustainable design: Natural lighting reduces energy consumption for artificial illumination.
• Flexible learning spaces: Rapidly reconfigurable furniture and partitions support individual study, group discussion, exhibitions, and multiple other functions.

The library extension project is part of PolyU's strategy of "optimising the learning experience" — just as hostel places are insufficient, the library as a "second living and learning space" has been systematically invested in and upgraded.

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# 9. Digital Library and Remote Access

As the scale of electronic resources began to surpass the physical collection from the 2020s onwards, the Pao Yue-kong Library's "Digital Library" function has become increasingly prominent:

• Off-campus access: All staff and students can access e-journals and databases off-campus via PolyU account VPN or EZproxy authentication.
• Core databases: Web of Science, Scopus, SciFinder, Engineering Village (Compendex), CAB Abstracts, PubMed, Emerald Insight, JSTOR, and others.
• Live chat reference service: The library website features an "Ask a Librarian" instant enquiry portal.
• RFID self-checkout: Physical books are self-borrowed and returned via an RFID system, reducing queuing time.

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# 10. Industrial Design Holdings and On-Campus Exhibition Spaces in Detail

The PolyU School of Design is recognised as one of Hong Kong's and the region's leading design education institutions. According to the School of Design website^※, the school covers industrial design, visual communication, interior architecture and design, design thinking, and more. Its exhibition activities are relatively frequent: the annual Graduation Show displays undergraduate and postgraduate graduation projects — physical product designs, branding visuals, and spatial installations — and is usually open to the public. Award-winning works from PolyU students and staff in the Red Dot and iF Design Awards are occasionally exhibited on campus. The school also operates a dedicated Design Gallery for student and staff work, touring exhibitions, and international collaborative shows (the scale of its "permanent collection" and frequency of public opening are subject to the School of Design's announcements for the current year; this article does not pin down a specific number of exhibits).

The PolyU campus also has several other exhibition spaces: The Jockey Club Innovation Tower, designed by Zaha Hadid, houses some School of Design activities, and its internal corridors and public areas regularly display student design work (for architectural details, see the article on The Jockey Club Innovation Tower). The PolyU School of Design has teaching collaborations with the Hong Kong Design Institute (HKDI) in Kwun Tong, and some exhibitions tour between the two institutions. The Pao Yue-kong Library Display Corner regularly holds small exhibitions in the library's public areas covering special collection introductions, university history artefacts, and academic themes.

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# 11. Digital Resources and E-Learning Tools

# 11.1 Core Database Overview

The Pao Yue-kong Library currently subscribes to over 453 databases (per the library Facts & Figures 2024/25 page^※), covering PolyU's major disciplines:

The above are representative databases; actual subscriptions may be adjusted annually.

# 11.2 e-Books

According to the library Facts & Figures 2024/25^※, the library currently holds over 8.1 million e-books. Major platforms include ProQuest Ebook Central (academic e-books covering all PolyU disciplines), ScienceDirect (Elsevier's science, technology, and medicine e-books and journals), and O'Reilly / Safari Books Online (computer science, programming, and data science e-books, subscribed in response to the needs of PolyU's DSAN faculty). There are also multimedia platforms such as Kanopy (documentary and academic film streaming) and Alexander Street Press (performing arts and music audio-visual resources).

# 11.3 Learning Management System and Library Integration

PolyU uses Blackboard (now Anthology/Blackboard Ultra) as its primary Learning Management System (LMS). The library's "Course Reserve" function is integrated with Blackboard: teaching staff can directly link to e-journal articles or e-book chapters within the system, and students can access them without leaving the course page. Additionally, the library's Subject Librarians can be booked by classes to deliver literature search training workshops. For the overall structure of the digital education platform (LEARN@PolyU, ITS coordination, etc.), see the article on publishing, academic journals, digital education, and IT; details are not repeated here.

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# 12. Maker Space and Library Technology Facilities

# 12.1 Maker Space Overview

Following the completion of the library extension and revitalisation project in 2022, the Pao Yue-kong Library introduced a Maker Space concept, upgrading facilities on several floors to create learning environments supporting digital creation and physical fabrication. Per the library services page^※, relevant facilities include:

• Media production facilities: A green-screen photography area and audio/video recording equipment, available to students with media production needs.
• 3D printing: 3D printers are available on some floors for students making design models or research prototypes (check the library's "Equipment Borrowing" page for specific models and usage policies).
• VR/AR experience equipment: The library has introduced virtual reality and augmented reality equipment for trial teaching and research use (check with IT Services and the library's current-year announcements for specific models).
• Scanning and digitisation workstations: Large-format scanners and document digitisation workstations for researchers processing materials.

# 12.2 Computing and Software Resources

• Library computer terminals: The library has over 400 computers (per the English Wikipedia entry for "Pao Yue-kong Library"), pre-loaded with academic and professional software, including SPSS, MATLAB, AutoCAD, and Adobe Creative Cloud.
• Self-service printing/copying: Self-service printers and copiers are available on all floors, supporting A4/A3 formats and black-and-white/colour printing. Students are charged via their campus accounts.
• RFID self-service book kiosks: Multiple self-service RFID borrowing and return stations are located throughout the library, allowing self-processing of physical books and reducing counter waiting times.

# 12.3 Learning Space Technology Upgrades (Post-2022)

The 2022 extension project brought the following upgrades across the library's floors:

Off-campus remote access mechanisms (EZproxy/VPN) and the "Ask a Librarian" live enquiry service are covered in Section 9; details are not repeated here.

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# 13. Frequently Asked Questions

Q1. Does PolyU have a true "museum"?

Strictly speaking, no. PolyU does not have an independent, named public museum comparable to the CUHK Art Museum or the HKU Museum and Art Gallery. The closest equivalents are: ① the library's special and digital collections (Cheng Kok-kong lyric manuscripts, rare books, university archives); ② the School of Design's graduation shows and gallery exhibitions (industrial design, visual communication works); ③ on-campus art display spaces (The Jockey Club Innovation Tower, etc.). All of these operate as exhibitions rather than permanent museums (per the library collections page^※).

Q2. Can members of the public use the PolyU Library or consult its special collections?

Generally, the Pao Yue-kong Library primarily serves registered students and staff. Members of the public wishing to enter and read must first apply for a visitor or access card. Electronic databases and most e-books require a PolyU account for access. For special collections (including rare books and manuscripts), prior contact with the library's special collections department and an appointment are required; physical inspection of original items requires additional approval. However, digitised versions of the Cheng Kok-kong lyric manuscripts are openly viewable to the public through the Digital Collections Portal without login (per the library digital collections page^※).

Q3. Can students use the library's Maker Space directly?

Yes, but some equipment requires advance booking or attendance at a training workshop. 3D printers, media production equipment, etc., usually require prior registration. Some precision equipment is restricted to registered students who can operate it independently only after training. Check the library's "Equipment Borrowing" page for the current year's application procedures.

Q4. Is the library open 24 hours?

The library has a 24-Hour Study Room, but overall opening hours (including reference services, database terminals, etc.) are not round-the-clock. Normal service hours are approximately 8:30–22:00 on weekdays, reduced on holidays/weekends, and may be extended to late night or 24 hours during examination periods. Check the library's "Opening Hours" page for the current year's schedule.

Q5. Does the PolyU Library share resources with other Hong Kong university libraries?

Yes. The PolyU Library participates in the Joint University Librarians Advisory Committee (JULAC), under which the eight UGC-funded university libraries practice Inter-Library Loan (ILL) and reciprocal access services. PolyU students can apply for a visitor card to enter other JULAC member libraries and, under certain conditions, borrow materials from them (specific rules are governed by each library's annual agreements).

Q6. Why are Cheng Kok-kong's lyric manuscripts held at PolyU Library and not the Hong Kong Heritage Museum?

According to available information, Cheng Kok-kong donated the manuscripts to the PolyU Library during his lifetime or they were donated afterwards; the specific reason for the donation has not been officially detailed. From an institutional perspective, the PolyU School of Design and Faculty of Humanities have academic links to the study of local popular culture, and the library's digitisation capacity ensures the manuscripts' long-term preservation and open access — these factors likely form the backdrop to their placement at PolyU. Digitised versions are openly accessible to researchers through the library Digital Collections Portal^※ without the need to visit the library in person.

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# 14. HKPM×PolyU: The Joint Chinese Silk Art Research Centre

PolyU's textile expertise is not solely future-facing (for smart textile materials, see the article on materials and textile breakthroughs); it also looks back at history. In December 2024, according to a PolyU press release^※ and a Hong Kong Palace Museum announcement^※, the Hong Kong Palace Museum (HKPM) and PolyU jointly established the Joint Chinese Textile Centre. This is a "museum + university" partnership drawing on complementary strengths: the Palace Museum side provides artefact collections and museological expertise, while PolyU contributes academic capabilities in textile technology, design, and humanities research (particularly from the School of Fashion and Textiles, the School of Design, and the Faculty of Humanities).

The research foundation of the centre is the Chris Hall Collection of nearly 3,000 Chinese historical textile artefacts. According to a Pulse@PolyU report^※, the particular strengths of this collection include Ming and Qing dynasty rank badges (官補) — the woven or embroidered square patches indicating an official's rank on their robes, invaluable physical evidence for the study of costume regulations and hierarchical culture — as well as religious textiles. The centre's work spans research (studying Chinese historical textiles from artistic, historical, and technological perspectives), teaching (PolyU developing teaching materials and offering courses on the history of Chinese textiles and silk), training, public education, and academic publishing, and provides interdisciplinary resources for PolyU's Faculty of Humanities, School of Fashion and Textiles, and School of Design.

A distinctive feature of the centre is that it goes beyond "preserving history" to pursue innovative application — transforming research on Chinese historical textiles into a resource for contemporary design, education, and cultural communication. This resonates with PolyU's applied motto "To learn and to apply" (開物成務) (see the article on motto and identity). While PolyU is researching "future textiles" such as smart perspiration-wicking and solar-energy fabrics on one hand, it is collaborating with the Palace Museum to study nearly 3,000 "historical textile" artefacts on the other. This dual-track approach — future-facing and history-gazing — reflects the depth of PolyU's fashion and textile discipline (see also the article on the School of Fashion and Textiles).

Together with the library's East Asian rare book collection and the Hong Kong Photography Collection (see Section 4), this centre forms part of PolyU's contribution to "knowledge and cultural heritage preservation" — a university's value lies not only in research output and rankings, but also in how it preserves, researches, and disseminates cultural heritage.

Source strength: Centre establishment (December 2024), co-organising parties, Chris Hall Collection of nearly 3,000 items, and Ming-Qing rank badges all appear in the PolyU press release, the Hong Kong Palace Museum announcement, and Pulse@PolyU.

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