Xi'an museum hosts treasures from early Italy

An exhibition of The Etruscans: The Dawn of Ancient Italy is on display at the Emperor Qin Shihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum in Xi'an, the capital of Shaanxi province, showing the civilization of ancient Europe.

Running from Sept 5 through Dec 7, the exhibition features 311 rare heritage items from Italy's Carla Alvarez Museum and the National Archaeological Museum of Florence, including a wide variety of household items, gold jewelry, urns and carved sarcophagi, providing different aspects of art history and the essence of the Etruscan civilization, according to Adriano Madaro, director of the Carla Alvarez Museum.

"The cultural relics from different sides of Italy highlight the vicissitudes of Etruscan civilization for thousands of years until fully naturalized from flourishing in Roman civilization," said Andrea Pessina, director of the Italy Tuscany Archaeological Heritage Supervision Bureau.

Zhou Kuiying, an official with the Shaanxi provincial administration of cultural heritage, said the exhibition is a part of activities to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the discovery of the terracotta warriors and horses, and the 35th anniversary of the Emperor Qin Shihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum's opening to the public.

Zhou said both Europe and Asia are important origins of human civilization, especially ancient Greece and Rome in the Middle Ages, which were the origins of Western culture.

China's Qin and Han periods (221 BC – AD 220) played an important role in connecting Chinese civilization, when both the West and China created splendid materials and unique cultural relics, Zhou said. "The Etruscan civilization became an important support to Rome's culture and had a profound influence on ancient Rome in custom, culture and architecture. Even today, it's still attractive."

In hosting the exhibition, the museum will provide visitors with both an understanding of the Qin culture and the experience of a charming exotic civilization, Zhou said.

The official said that as a world-renowned museum and important cultural relics site, Emperor Qin Shihuang's Mausoleum Site Museum takes the responsibility to promote communication and development between Western and Eastern cultures.

"By holding this kind of exhibition, the museum can make a larger contribution to enriching the cultural life of the public and show the excellent achievements of people," Zhou said.