One hundred of Chinese specialists will be trained in protecting
the cultural heritage sites and relics along the Silk Road over the
next five years, thanks to a cooperation project between China,
Japan and the Republic of Korea.
The special training program, the first of its kind in China,
will be carried out by state-level research institutes of China and
Japan, according to the China Cultural Relics Research
Institute.
Japan and the Republic of Korea will invest 125 million Japanese
yen (about US$1.14 million) in the joint training project.
Those working in the cultural heritage protection organizations
along the Silk Road in China's Xinjiang, Qinghai, Ningxia, Gansu,
Shaanxi and Henan, especially young and middle-aged specialists,
were chosen to join the project.
The training will include classes on cultural heritage
protection theory, experiments in labs and field teaching in the
protection of earth relics, ancient buildings, archaeological
sites, pottery and porcelain, metal objects, murals, textiles and
paper relics.
The Silk Road started in the ancient Chinese metropolis of
Chang'an, known today as Xi'an, and ended in the eastern bank of
Mediterranean Sea. It traversed about 7,000 kilometers through
China and central Asia and became the nexus between different
civilizations in ancient Europe and Asia.
More than 1,200 relic sites, mainly grottoes and ancient earth
buildings, are dotted along the Silk Road in China, including the
World Heritage of Mogao Grottoes in Dunhuang in northwest China's
Gansu Province.
A lot of the cultural heritage sites along the ancient route are
under threat of destruction from natural and human factors.
Experts say nearly 90 percent of the relic sites along the Silk
Road have lost their original appearance.
China has strengthened its efforts to protect the Silk Road in
recent years. The State Administration of Cultural Heritage (SACH)
has announced that it is joining hands with other countries to
apply for the United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural
Organization (UNESCO) to include the Silk Road on the World
Heritage List.
The joint training project is aimed at upgrading the expertise
of the cultural heritage specialists along the Silk Road and giving
better protection to the cultural heritage sites along the Silk
Road, said Hou Jukun, an official with SACH.
(Xinhua News Agency May 16, 2006)
