The former Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath's home unveils the ‘Great Wall of China’ photographic display

LONDON Mar. 30 (People's Daily Online)—— Arundells, the home of former Prime Minister Sir Edward Heath, in Salisbury reopens to the public in March with new displays including a ‘Great Wall of China’ collection of rare photographs, . The collection, which has been installed on the first floor of Arundells shows the pivotal role played by Sir Edward Heath in building increasingly close political, trade and investment and cultural relations between the China and the UK.

The collection of ten photographs covers the years 1974 to 2001 and includes Sir Edward in conversation with Chinese leaders. It also includes photographs of Sir Edward as Prime Minister meeting the Shanghai Acrobatic Troupe at the London Coliseum in 1973.

In the spirit of the Year of the Monkey, Arundells also features hand-painted Monkey King Chinese Wallpaper, which depicts scenes from the Chinese 16th Century novel ‘Journey to the West’. The Arundells collection also includes an 8th-century Tang Dynasty horse, a 16th-century Ming bowl, and a pair of Qianlong vases.

The new display will create a permanent home for this rare collection of photographs that were presented to Arundells by the Chinese Ambassador to UK, H.E. Liu Xiaoming after a visit to the house in 2014.

Speaking at Arundells Mr Liu said, "British political leaders, represented by Sir Edward Heath, broke the political ice: when drinking the water, we should not forget who dug the well. In that spirit, China never forgets the contributions of the old friends to the China-UK relationship."

Arundells will be hosting its first exhibition of 2016 from April until early July on the theme ‘World Leaders of the 1970s – Years of Turmoil’ which will include Chairman Mao and Deng Xiaoping amongst the featured leaders. From the middle of March, the house is also instituting Chinese language material on its website to provide the growing number of Chinese visitors to Britain with guidance on the treasures which Arundells has to offer.