After nearly eight decades overseas, two volumes were handed over by the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of Asian Art in the US and transferred to China's National Cultural Heritage Administration in May. Volume I, titled Sishi Ling, is privately owned and preserved in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery in Washington, DC.
The return of these manuscripts is a significant achievement, resulting from years of collaboration between China and the US in the fields of culture and museums. It sets an example for international cooperation in artifact restitution, Rao Quan, head of the National Cultural Heritage Administration, said at the ceremony on Monday.
