Artworks from Fujian and Taiwan spotlight 'intimate kinship' forged over centuries across the Straits, Lin Qi reports.

When boarding a train or plane in Fujian province, people might be surprised to find seats purchased by pilgrims to place the statue of a lavishly dressed woman, surrounded by uniformed guardians. She is treated with such respect and care, because of her courageous and tragic life story.

Legend has it that the maiden named Lin Mo lived in a seaside village on Meizhou Island, Fujian, in the 10th century. She was kindhearted, and died when attempting to rescue people fishing out at sea and confronting a thunderstorm. Her fellow villagers built a temple, where they made a seated statue of her in remembrance, and worshiped her as a goddess, under the honorable title Mazu, to protect those who depend on the sea for a living.

The worship evolved into a belief popular among people living in coastal areas, with sacrificial ceremonies and relevant customs and tales developing as natives of Fujian migrated elsewhere, and spread the Mazu belief in their communities around the world.