Discover China: Silk Road Week brings cultural heritage into public view

The 2020 Silk Road Week, an event aimed at strengthening the global protection of Silk Road cultural heritage, concluded Wednesday in Hangzhou, capital of east China's Zhejiang Province.

Exhibitions and performances and events such as seminars were held during the week between June 19 and June 24, around the theme -- "The Silk Road: Mutual Learning for Future Collaborations."

To tell stories about cultural exchanges between China and countries along the ancient Silk Road, over 20 Chinese museums and cultural heritage institutions showcased their Silk Road-themed antiquities at the exhibitions.

More than 200 museums and institutions from 14 countries around the world participated in online activities during the event, garnering around 100 million views.

To strengthen the protection of Silk Road cultural heritage, the International Association for the Study of Silk Road Textiles and the Chinese Museums Association's Committee of Museums along the Silk Road decided in 2019 to hold an annual Silk Road Week within the week around June 22 every year.

The decision was made to celebrate the anniversary of the Chang'an-Tian-shan Silk Road Corridor becoming a UNESCO World Heritage site on June 22, 2014.

"We hope museums and institutions along the Silk Road introduce the history and cultural heritage of the ancient route to the public during the week," said Zhao Feng, curator of China National Silk Museum and one of the brains behind the event.

While disseminating information and knowledge on the Silk Road cultural heritage, the Silk Road Week also aimed at facilitating academic research.

During the event, a 2019 report on Silk Road cultural heritage was released to introduce the year's major events on Silk Road, including cultural events, archaeological discoveries, exhibitions, and academic publications.

Meanwhile, an international collaboration project called the "World Map of Silk Project" was launched during the event.

Supported by UNESCO, the project aims to integrate global resources and information about the silk heritage and establish a platform based on geographical distribution to demonstrate the development of the silk industry and international exchanges along the Silk Road.

"This project can help us better study the origin of silk and the exchange of silk-producing methods in the time and space dimensions," said Zhao.

So far, scholars from 13 countries have agreed to participate in the project, added Zhao.