HANGZHOU, China, June 20, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The China National Silk Museum in Hangzhou officially launched the 2024 Silk Road Week on the afternoon of June 19. The event, themed “Roads Connect and Civilizations Blossom,” features a diverse array of activities, including the thematic exhibition “Heavenly Palace: Chang’an on the Silk Roads” and the special exhibition “Lyon in the 18th Century: The Prosperity of the Silk Capital in the Age of Enlightenment.” The week also includes the academic project Annual Report of Cultural Heritage on the Silk Roads and the SROM Award Ceremony of the Silk Road Online Curating Competition at the Silk Road Evening.

Initiated by the China National Silk Museum, the “Cultural Heritage on the Silk Roads” project stands out as the most significant academic initiative of the 2024 Silk Road Week. This project gathers information on cultural heritage along the Silk Roads from the past year. In collaboration with Zhejiang University, Popular Archaeology Magazine, and the ICOMOS International Conservation Center – Xi’an (IICC-X), the annual report is categorized into four distinct sections: Thematic Exhibitions, Archaeological Discoveries, Academic Works, and Cultural Events.

The completion of the annual report was greatly enhanced by a robust international team comprising cultural institutions worldwide. Over 22 renowned international scholars from nine countries participated in the review and voting phase of the report. The report announces the “Top Ten” lists in the following categories:

Thematic Exhibitions:

Highlighted exhibitions include:

• “China Trade Art in the 18th and 19th Centuries”
• “Hepu Embarks -The Maritime Silk Road of the Han Dynasty in Guangxi“
• “Lustrous Translucent Glass -Ancient Glass Art Along the Silk Road”
• “Good Fortune Sails Across the World -The Cultural Hallmarks of Maritime Silk Road”
• “Tea World – Tea Culture Special Exhibition”
• “Magnificence and Grandeur -Immersive Experience of Grotto Art”
• “Cities and Grasslands: Civilization Dialogue in Central Asia and Kazakhstan”
• “The Great Silk Road World Heritage Exhibition”
• “Hoist Zhejiang Sails -The Zhejiang Epic on Maritime Silk Road During Song and Yuan Dynasties”
• “Colorful Asia -Asian Costume Exhibition”

Archaeological Discoveries:

Notable discoveries include:

• The Tuokuzisalai Site (Tangwangcheng Site) in Tumxuk City
• Moer Buddhist Temple Site in Kashgar City
• The Shipwreck Site of Ming Dynasty Founded in Sansha City
• The Shipwreck Site of Yuan Dynasty Founded in Zhangzhou City
• The Oc Eo Ancient City Site in Southern Vietnam
• The Buddha Statue in the Ancient Port Site of Berenike in Egypt
• The Pabalugala Site in the Kurunegala Plains
• The Shipwrecks Site in the Vicinity of Kasos Island
• The Capo Corso 2 Shipwreck Founded in Italy
• The Shipwreck Site off the Coast of Moshav Beit Yanai in Israel

Academic Works:

Prominent academic works include:

• China and the Silk Roads (ca. 100 BCE to 1800 CE): Role and Content of Its Historical Access to the Outside World by Angela Schottenhammer
• Handbook of Ancient Afro-Eurasian Economies (Volume 3): Frontier-Zone Processes and Transimperial Exchange by Sitta von Reden (ed.)
• Greco-Buddhist Relations in the Hellenistic Far East by Olga Kubica
• The King’s Road: Diplomacy and the Remaking of the Silk Road by Wen Xin
• Beyond Borders: Indo-Sasanian Trade and Its Central Indian Connections (Circa CE 300-700) by Ashish Kumar
• Manichaeism: From Iran to the Mediterranean and via the Silk Road to Southern China by Manfred Hutter
• Dunhuang Documents from the National Library of France by Rong Xinjiang (ed.)
• Archaeological research on the Plateau Silk Road from Prehistory to the Tang Dynasty by Huo Wei
• The Qinghai Route of the Silk Road from the 6th to 8th Centuries by Zhao Feng
• The Genealogy of the Traditional Chinese Single-Sheet Tianxia Tu by Gong Yingyan

Cultural Events:

Significant cultural events include:

• The 35th Anniversary of the UNESCO Silk Roads Programme
• The Asian Cultural Heritage Protection Alliance is Established
• The Silk Road: Zarafshan-Karakum Corridor Has Been Successfully Inscribed onto the UNESCO World Heritage List
• 2023 Member Conference of the “Belt and Road” International Cooperation Alliance for Cultural Heritage
• 2023 ISU Members Assembly & International Forum on Sericulture Silk Industry Development Trend
• The Four-Country Joint Archaeological Survey and Exchange Activity in the Fergana Basin
• 2023 International Archaeological School
• 2023 Silk Road Week
• “Digital Cave of Scriptures” officially Launched Online
• “Silk Road Rivers: How Water Shaped Societies and Empires in Central Asia” Project

This project highlights the achievements of cultural exchange and mutual learning in the sustainable development of cultural heritage worldwide, while also providing a new model for research in the field of Silk Road cultural heritage. As a distinguished academic achievement, the annual report embodies significant cultural leadership and international influence.

The 2023 Cultural Heritage on the Silk Roads is now officially open to the public.

SOURCE China National Silk Museum