CRI听力:Palace Museum annex to be built in Hong Kong

The Palace Museum and Hong Kong authorities have signed a memorandum of cooperation on the Hong Kong Palace Museum in Beijing.

Shan Jixiang is the chief curator of the Palace Museum.

"It is a new pattern of cooperation the Palace Museum wants to create beyond the Chinese mainland. It is not confined to cooperation in exhibitions, but extends to cultural construction in multiple aspects. The new museum will in Hong Kong will have all the functions of a museum."

Limited by space, Beijing's Palace Museum is only capable of displaying less than one percent of its collection each year.

The museum has been looking for opportunities to present more of its cultural relics beyond the crimson walls of the Forbidden City.

The museum in Hong Kong will be built on a 10-thousand square meter site in the West Kowloon Cultural District.

Its exhibits are expected to include cultural relics featuring the Forbidden City's history and imperial life, along with paintings, calligraphy and ceramics from its permanent collection.

Shan Jixiang says they've found that Forbidden City culture is particularly popular in Hong Kong.

"In the Palace Museum there are as many as 8-thousand pieces of national treasures like painting of the 'Riverside Scene at Qingming Festival.' We will run exhibitions on different subjects, each presenting some important exhibits. People in Hong Kong are enthusiastic about Forbidden City culture and our displays. In fact, we think they're even more enthusiastic than people in many other cities we've been to."

The museum is promising a comprehensive cultural experience, including digital exhibitions, public lectures and unique souvenirs.

Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor is the chief secretary of the Hong Kong government.

"It fits the status of Hong Kong as an international metropolis to build a cultural space exploring China's history, culture and arts. It showcases Hong Kong's special position as a crossroads between eastern and western cultures, as well as the benefits Hong Kong gets from being in the 'one country, two systems' form of governance."

This coming year will mark the 20th anniversary of Hong Kong's return to China.