A glimpse into cultural and creative products rolled out by Chinese museums

Broccoli, crab sticks, meatballs…visitors at the Gansu Provincial Museum in Lanzhou, northwest China's Gansu Province, carefully select various "ingredients" and hand them over to staff members to be "cooked". Through this interactive performance, customers receive numbered tickets, choose their preferred level of spiciness, and finally take their "malatang", a dish where ingredients are selected and cooked in a spicy broth, home.

Photo shows cultural and creative products inspired by malatang, a local street dish featuring a mix of fresh vegetables and meat boiled in a hot, spicy broth, at Gansu Provincial Museum in Lanzhou, northwest China's Gansu Province. (Photo from the cultural and creative product design team of Gansu Provincial Museum on Chinese lifestyle-sharing platform Xiaohongshu)

These visitors aren't picking out real food for a real order of malatang though, they are choosing plush toys in a new and engaging experience being offered by the museum.

This is one of the many examples of cultural and creative products being introduced by museums across China.

Visiting museums has become a popular activity among young people in China. In response, museums are putting out more creative products to vividly showcase history and culture to visitors.

Photo shows an ancient bronze horse statue at the Gansu Provincial Museum in Lanzhou, northwest China's Gansu Province. (Photo from Gansu Provincial Museum on Weibo)

Museums have taken different approaches in their production of cultural and creative products, with some focusing on cute, or "so ugly it's cute", products.

The Gansu Provincial Museum has been a leader in that regard, with its cute malatang plushies, and its "so ugly it's cute" horse plushie. Based on the museum's "Bronze Galloping Horse Treading on a Flying Swallow" statue, which was recovered from an Eastern Han Dynasty tomb, the museum has produced a green horse plushie. Netizens have claimed it's "too ugly not to buy" and it has quickly become a favorite in the museum shop.

Photo shows toys inspired by an ancient bronze horse statue at the Gansu Provincial Museum in Lanzhou, northwest China's Gansu Province. (Photo from the official page of Gansu Provincial Museum)

Other museums have focused on combining traditional culture with modern ideas. The Palace Museum, located in Beijing, has taken an image of the Emperor Yongzheng and made slight changes. In the image, Yongzheng is winking and also making a peace sign with his right hand, a familiar pose for many youth taking pictures today.

In this endeavor, museums are embracing young people with a welcoming attitude and inclusivity, while young people are emerging as a significant driving force in the preservation and innovative development of culture.

The left part of the combo photo shows a toy inspired by a ceramic beast figure and the right part of the combo photo shows cultural and creative products inspired by the Giant Wild Goose Pagoda. They are rolled out by Xi'an Museum in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. (Photo from Xi'an Museum on Weibo)

Photo shows a cultural and creative product depicting a lady of the Tang Dynasty (618-907). It is launched by Shaanxi History Museum in Xi'an, northwest China's Shaanxi Province. (Photo from the flagship store of Shaanxi History Museum on Weibo)