The first Forbidden City exhibition of 2022, The Making of Zhongguo: Origins, Developments and Achievements of Chinese Civilization, opened at the Hall of Literary Brilliance on January 25, and will be extended to early May. Its tremendous appeal among Chinese culture and history buffs has even made it hard to obtain a ticket via the Palace Museum's official channels.

Jointly organized by no fewer than 30 renowned institutions, the showcase presents over 130 pieces or sets of precious cultural relics from the Neolithic Age, all the way through the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Artifacts and artworks include pottery, jade, bronze, gold and silver, as well as calligraphy, painting, rare documents and seals. Some national treasures, like the He Zun, an ancient ritual wine vessel, the Changxin Palace Lantern, and the Four Medical Tantras, too, are on show.

The exhibition compares the longstanding civilization of China to a great flowing river. It interprets the origin, propagation and progress of society as sources (yuan), streams (liu) and confluence (hui), the core concepts of the exhibition's subdivisions.

The retrospective starts from the Sources, with an exposition on the nation's geography and the birth of Chinese civilization. There, visitors can learn more about the unique material culture, philosophical schools, values, systems and multiple ethnic groups.

The Streams represent the history of the fusion of regional cultures and ethnic distinctiveness into a unified national identity, human destiny, and global life.

The confluence explains the Chinese concepts of benevolence, the traditional unification of family and state, and the spirit of perfection, innovation, and wisdom running through the achievements of China's traditional culture like a red thread.

(Photos and text by Wei Yao)

Copyedited by Elsbeth van Paridon

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