Maritime Silk Road Museum in Quanzhou to make its debut

The Maritime Silk Road Museum at the Palace Museum in Shishi, a county-level city in Quanzhou, East China's Fujian province, is expected to complete construction at the end of June.

The museum covers a construction area of more than 30,000 square meters, with an exhibition area of about 8,700 sq m.

It contains three main exhibition halls, including a permanent exhibition hall for the Maritime Silk Road exhibition, a temporary exhibition hall for the Palace Museum, and a private collection exhibition hall for Xu Rongmao, the founder and chairman of Hong Kong Shimao Group, who is also a major donor to the Maritime Silk Road Museum.

Adopting the traditional southern Fujian architectural style for the building's facade, the new museum highlights the beauty and exquisiteness of ancient Fujian buildings.

The Palace Museum in Beijing, also known as the Forbidden City, has an abundant collection of Maritime Silk Road relics, given that many of the imported treasures were meant for the royal court. The Palace Museum was China's royal residence during the Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.

It has provided guidance on construction, exhibition design, and operation to the Maritime Silk Road Museum in Quanzhou.

It will also lend cultural relics to the Maritime Silk Road Museum in Quanzhou to increase its exhibitions, allowing more Quanzhou residents to see the precious collections of the Palace Museum.