Amazing Chinese Characters Exhibition Opens in Beijing

Amazing Chinese Characters Exhibition Opens in Beijing

“Amazing Chinese Characters — Achievements of the Project for the Inheritance and Development of Ancient Chinese Characters and Chinese Civilization,” a new exhibition co-organized by the National Museum of China and the project’s secretariat, opened to the public on July 16, 2026. It runs for three months in Hall N2 of the museum.

The World’s Oldest Living Script

Chinese characters are the only self-originated classical writing system in the world that has been in continuous use for thousands of years. From early symbolic marks created by ancient ancestors, the script evolved into a rich family of ancient forms: oracle bone inscriptions, bronze inscriptions, bamboo and silk texts, and seal and clay-seal script. Ancient characters are the key to reading early history; their structures preserve the thought, customs, technology and daily life of ancient China, and are regarded as a root of Chinese cultural confidence.

A National Project Bearing Fruit

In November 2020, eight national bodies — including the Central Publicity Department, the Ministry of Education, the National Language Commission, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, the National Cultural Heritage Administration and the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences — jointly launched the “Ancient Scripts Project.” After five years of work, the project has made major progress in research platforms, talent cultivation, academic studies, international exchange, AI applications and public education. The exhibition pairs artifacts with research results, featuring newly excavated, newly collected and newly reconstructed materials that reflect the latest scholarship.

270 Artifacts in Six Sections

The show is organized into six parts, from oracle bones “restored to light” and the bronze age, through the unification of script, to texts written on bamboo and silk and the passing of the torch across generations. More than 270 objects — oracle bones, bronze vessels, bamboo and silk manuscripts, seals and ancient coins — are lent by 20 museums, research institutes and universities across China.

As a public report on the project’s progress, the exhibition invites visitors to discover the vitality of the “amazing Chinese characters” in a new era.

Source: https://www.badouart.com/28382.html