A Delegation from the National Museum of China Visited Henan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology (HPICHA)

On June 25, a delegation headed by Chen Chengjun, Executive Deputy Director of the National Museum of China, visited HPICHA to discuss the establishment of a regular institutional cooperation framework. This marked the first formal in-depth exchange built upon years of prior collaboration on cultural relic loans and exhibitions. Kong Xiangzhen, Second-level Inspector of the Henan Provincial Administration of Cultural Heritage, attended the meeting to offer guidance. Li Qin, Director of HPICHA, together with core staff from relevant departments, took part in the discussions.

Li Qin extended a warm welcome to the delegation and spoke highly of the two sides’ joint exhibition plans. She stated that HPICHA would fully support comprehensive, in-depth cooperation. Drawing on Henan’s abundant archaeological resources of the Central Plains and the National Museum of China’s strengths as a national-level platform, she expressed the hope that this visit would mark a turning point, yielding tangible outcomes through diversified collaborations including resource sharing, co-curated exhibitions and academic exchanges.

Chen Chengjun briefed the participants on the National Museum of China’s development plans for exhibitions and academic research. He proposed elevating the existing short-term, one-off cultural relic loan partnerships into long-term strategic cooperation. He also proposed establishing a comprehensive long-term cooperation framework to jointly develop high-quality exhibitions showcasing the origins and evolution of Chinese civilization.

In his guiding remarks, Kong Xiangzhen stated that the Henan Provincial Administration of Cultural Heritage would coordinate and consolidate provincial cultural heritage resources to fully support the implementation of this bilateral cooperation framework. Participants engaged in in-depth discussions covering exhibition curation, the dynamic revitalization of cultural relics, and the translation of archaeological research findings into practical outputs, reaching a number of consensus points on medium- and long-term cooperation priorities.