Sharing World History

Museums, bastions of cultural relics, are the main channel of exchange and mutual learning among civilizations, and they contribute greatly to human progress and global peace. The National Museum of China (NMC), nicknamed China’s “cultural lounge,” operates as a prestigious window to showcase the charm of Chinese civilization and spread the achievements of world civilization.

Expanding Networking

In April 2019, the NMC initiated the Global Museum Directors Forum as a high-end dialogue mechanism aligned with the Belt and Road Initiative and signed the National Museums Consensus with museums from more than 20 countries. In July 2022, the second Global Museum Directors Forum took place online and offline, themed “Challenge and Persistence: Museum’s Responsibilities of the Times.” At that event, 55 museum directors and representatives from 26 countries exchanged insights and experience.

Today, the NMC is partnering with nearly 100 foreign museums. It actively works with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization Museum Alliance, the International Alliance of Museums of the Silk Road, and the BRICS Alliance of Museums and regularly carries out exhibition exchanges and talks with its counterparts in Japan, South Korea, and other countries. And the NMC’s participation in global governance has expanded thanks to active involvement in activities sponsored by international organizations such as UNESCO and the International Council of Museums.

Global Perspective

In September 2020, the NMC joined 15 global partners to organize the “Treasure Hunt Relay: Global Museum Director’s Choice” project, themed “Hand in Hand: Museum and Me.” Directors of the prestigious museums presented selected cultural relics in person to the global audience during the livestreamed event.

In July 2022, the NMC partnered with nine top domestic museums and 24 leading foreign museums to launch the Season II of “Treasure Hunt Relay: Global Museum Director’s Choice” online, themed “Hand in Hand: Share the Splendor of World Civilizations.” Domestic museum directors joined hands to effectively tell Chinese stories to the world, and in partnership with their counterparts at international museums, they showcased the splendid achievements of human civilization by displaying nearly 150 rare cultural relics and promoted a civilizational outlook featuring equality, mutual learning, dialogue, and inclusiveness.

As the first stop of the online relay, the NMC presented a livestream themed “A Glimpse into China: Demystifying the Genetic Codes of Chinese Civilization Through Words.” Five selected collections were presented via digital technology, 8K photography, and animation technology, vividly showcasing the historical, cultural, aesthetic, and technological value of those cultural relics as well as their significance for the new era.

Cross-border Displays

The NMC also promotes cross-border displays of cultural relics and sends its collections abroad to be shown in Musée du Quai Branly, the Museum of New Zealand, and other museums, while bringing excellent foreign exhibitions to China. Seeing the British Museum’s “Queen’s Harp” collection in person and appreciating the trans-Atlantic civilization is a bucket-list-worthy experience for history and museum aficionados in China.

To commemorate its 110th anniversary in 2022, the NMC launched important exhibitions dedicated to international exchange via innovative technological methods such as online handover. At the exhibition titled “Tota Italia: Origins of a Nation,” for instance, visitors can enjoy precious cultural relics from the Apennine Peninsula including bronzes, sculptures, pottery, and coins, which tell the story of blended civilizations with an ancient vibe and humid atmosphere of marine civilization.

“Nothing, not even mountains and oceans, can separate people with shared goals and vision.” The NMC is adhering to its new mission to showcase brilliant Chinese civilization and work with global counterparts to celebrate flourishing civilizations.