Photo:Courtesy of the National Cultural Heritage Administration

Over 7,200 cultural and natural heritage activities will be held across China to celebrate the 2023 Cultural and Natural Heritage Day. The main event, themed on "conservation and utilization of heritage and cultural confidence," will take place in Chengdu, Southwest China's Sichuan Province, on June 10, featuring various cultural events, according to a press release issued by the National Cultural Heritage Administration (NCHA) on Friday.

During the Cultural and Natural Heritage Day, Sichuan's cultural and relic units will also hold more than 500 activities including exhibitions, museum study tours, lectures on cultural relics and performances, among which an exhibition themed on the San Su Ci, the memorial temple and former residence of Su Xun and his two sons Su Shi and Su Zhe, three literary masters of the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), is set to debut to the public. The officials will also launch the pilot construction project themed with the cultural relics related with Su Shi, said Wang Yi, head of Sichuan Provincial Cultural Heritage Administration, at a press conference held in NCHA on Friday.

In addition, the Qiong Kiln National Archaeological Site Park, located approximately 60 kilometers from downtown Chengdu and known as "the birthplace of colored porcelain in China," officially opened.

The main event in Chengdu also includes a forum on how technology supports the protection of cultural relics. A total of 13 academic reports including the project to trace the origins of Chinese civilization, ancient populations, and climate change on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau, as well as the protection and utilization of digital cultural heritage, will be revealed at the forum.

Under the arrangement of NCHA, more than 7,200 activities will be organized by cultural relic departments and cultural institutions across the country during the Cultural and Natural Heritage Day, noted the press release.

China currently boasts 56 properties inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, including 14 natural sites, 38 cultural sites and four mixed sites, ranking the first worldwide, according to UNESCO.

Global Times