Xi Jinping visits exhibition marking Palace Museum's centennial

BEIJING -- As the Palace Museum celebrates its 100th founding anniversary, Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, Chinese president, and chairman of the Central Military Commission, visited the museum on the morning of Oct 27 for an exhibition titled "A Century of Stewardship: From the Forbidden City to the Palace Museum."

Cai Qi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and a member of the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, also visited the exhibition.

Around 10 am, Xi and other people arrived at the Palace Museum. They visited the West Wing Gallery, the Main Gallery and the East Wing Gallery of the Meridian Gate, which house the exhibition. Featuring 200 pieces and sets of precious cultural relics, the exhibition's three sections -- A Lineage of Civilization, A Century of Endeavor, and Myriad Visions of Splendor -- trace the museum's century-long development and showcase its achievements in cultural heritage preservation and research.

Masterpieces of calligraphy and painting, as well as bronzeware, jade and porcelain artifacts, bear witness to the Chinese nation's splendid history and enduring continuity of its cultural lineage. Xi listened attentively to the explanations during the visit, pausing from time to time to observe the exhibits closely and inquire about relevant details. He pointed out that the Palace Museum embodies the cultural genes of the Chinese nation and stands as an important hallmark of Chinese civilization. To better protect the Palace Museum and give full play to its role is a matter of great significance to the nation and a glorious mission for its staff, Xi said. Standing at a new starting point after a centennial journey, the museum should carry forward its fine traditions, adhere to the principle that cultural relics belong to and serve the people, strengthen the relics protection and restoration, and enhance the revitalization and utilization of cultural relics, Xi said, calling for efforts to make the Palace Museum a major base for patriotic education and a key window through which people from other parts of the world can gain a better understanding of Chinese civilization and the Chinese nation.

Li Shulei and leading officials from relevant central Party and state departments, also visited the exhibition.