Shaanxi to Renovate Museum of Banpo RuinsThe provincial government of Shaanxi Province will spend 10 million yuan this year to renovate the Museum of the Banpo Ruins, the largest and best-preserved primitive village ever discovered in China.The project focuses on installation of a fire prevention system, following four separate fires which broke out in the building last May, said Wei Guang, curator of the museum. Experts discussed the renovation plan twice last year and their conclusions were sent to the State Administration of Cultural Heritage last October, he added. The museum was built on the 6,000-year-old Banpo Village about seven kilometers in the east section of Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi. The remains of this primitive settlement were discovered in 1952 when workers were laying the foundation for a factory building. The ancient settlement reveals the natural living environment, labor skills and social customs of local residents belonging to a matriarchal clan community of the Neolithic age. The museum has hosted more than 20 million Chinese and foreign tourists over the past four decades. |
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