A number of important and valuable cultural relics of China that have been carefully preserved in warehouses will be revealed to the public during the week-long National Day holiday in Beijing.
The Museum of Chinese History, which is located on the east side of Tian'anmen Square, will hold a special exhibition showing a selection of its collection.
The exhibition features 170 examples of bronze ware, ceramics, lacquer wares, jade artefacts, as well as gold and silver articles.
The exhibits were selected from more than 300,000 pieces in the collection. They range from prehistoric times to the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911).
Included in the exhibition is a well-known prehistoric pottery bowl discovered at Banpo in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province.
The red and black bowl is painted with dancing figures and fish.
The mysterious bronze masks discovered in Sanxingdui, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, will also be on show. The masks shed light on the ancient kingdom of Shu some 3,000 to 4,000 years ago.
Among the bronze artifacts are national treasures like the Simuwu quadripod.
Visitors to the exhibition can also see delicate porcelain wares from the most renowned ancient kilns of China.
As well as the special exhibition, the museum will be hosting a National Day holiday exhibition entitled, Spirits of the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907): A Glance into the Social Life.
The exhibition features 250 cultural relics of the Tang Dynasty, one third of which have never been exhibited before.
Visitors to the exhibition will be impressed by the prosperous multi-ethnic civilization that existed more than 1,000 years ago.
Another exhibition, "Khitan Kingdom," which displays cultural relics of the Liao Dynasty (916-1125) in today's North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, will also be staged during the holiday.
(China Daily September 30, 2002)
