Yuanmingyuan exhibition opens in Berlin

Germany has opened an exhibition of Yuanmingyuan at the Chinese Cultural Center in Berlin. It is Yuanmingyuan's first overseas exhibition.

With its excellent architectural technology and delicate buildings, Yuanmingyuan is honored as "the garden of gardens". By displaying more than 200 pictures and 3D videos of restored sites and relics, the exhibition shows Yuanmingyuan's building history, destruction and reconstruction.

Alexander Koch, curator of German Historical Museum, said, "I'm impressed by the way it is constructed, the Chinese traditional architecture, that also has European elements. So it is a witness to the exchange between the two cultures, especially in the 17th and 18th centuries."

The most attractive parts of the exhibition are the panoramic model of the Hall of Zhengdaguangming and the replicas of Chinese zodiac statues. It's the first time most of these precious exhibits have been seen in Berlin. The organizer hopes the exhibition will stimulate the world's thinking on the communication and cooperation between western and eastern cultures. Human civilization as a whole should treasure and preserve its common cultural relics.

Yuming Cao, director of Yuanmingyuan Management Office, said, "The exhibition has taught us that Germany has its own methods of preserving cultural relics. We are willing to bring these experiences and ideas back to China where they can contribute to our preservation work at Yuanmingyuan."

The exhibition will run until January. A speech about the royal garden will also be held at the Berlin Institute of Technology in which the culture of Yuanmingyuan will be introduced to German university students.