Guinness World Records has confirmed that Chinese actor Zhang Jinlai, otherwise known as Liu Xiao Ling Tong, has set an impressive new record for the Largest collection of Journey to the West memorabilia, with an incredible 1,508 individual items related to the original 16th century book, as verified in Huaian, Jiangsu, China last weekend.
This exciting news comes just days before the Chinese New Year on 8 February – the Year of the Monkey.
Liu Xiao Ling Tong is best known for his role as the Monkey King (Sun Wukong) in the 1986 television series 'Journey to the West'.
His extensive collection is kept in a museum and includes statues, books, costumes, art and masks.
Commenting on his record achievement, Liu Xiao Ling Tong said: “When I was a child, I dreamed of achieving a Guinness World Records title and I am so excited that the dream has come true now! I love the ‘monkey culture’ so much and I have been a keen collector of items related to Journey to the West for many years, especially different versions of the novel in different languages. Each piece of the collection is as precious as my child. I hope to promote the culture of Journey to the West through my exploration and breakthrough in the world of art and I am looking forward to achieving my next world record title.”
President of Guinness World Records Greater China, Rowan Simons (pictured with the record-holder above) said: "I am honored to present Liu Xiao Ling Tong with his Guinness World Records certificate on the eve of Chinese Spring Festival. Journey to the West is a classic Chinese novel and Liu Xiao Ling Tong, in his lifelong role as the Monkey King, represents the most famous of Chinese characters. Following our verification of the amazing collection in Jiangsu, Guinness World Records is proud to share Liu Xiao Ling Tong’s achievement as a master collector and to help promote his efforts to spread 'monkey culture’ around the world.”
