Hong Kong Palace Museum to be "jewel" beside Vitoria Harbor: chief executive

The Hong Kong Palace Museum, which will display collection of the Palace Museum in Beijing, will be a "jewel on the crown" beside the world-famous Victoria Harbor, Chief Executive of China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Carrie Lam said on Monday.

At a groundbreaking ceremony for the HKPM held on Monday in Hong Kong's West Kowloon Cultural District, Lam said "as the much anticipated West Kowloon Cultural District is gradually becoming a prominent landmark on the waterfront of Victoria Harbor, the Hong Kong Palace Museum will be the jewel on the crown."

"With the new dedicated museum, local residents and visitors will enjoy long-term opportunities to appreciate the exquisite Palace Museum collection, to be curated in a comprehensive and in-depth manner with Hong Kong characteristics," she said.

Hong Kong authorities and the Palace Museum signed a cooperation agreement in June last year on the development of the HKPM.

Pointing out that the HKPM "builds on the very strong and solid cooperation" between the HKSAR and the Palace Museum over the years, Lam said the new museum will enrich the scope of the West Kowloon Cultural District.

The museum, expected to be completed in 2022, will have 7,600 square meters of gallery space dedicated to gold, bronze and jade items, paintings, and ceramic objects, as well as displays on life in the Imperial Court. Other museum facilities include a 400-seat lecture theater, activity rooms, a restaurant and shop.

Praising it as a "world class museum" for long-term display of artifacts from the Palace Museum, Chairman of Hong Kong Palace Museum Limited Bernard Charnwut Chan said the HKPM will enrich Hong Kong people's cultural life and further enhance Hong Kong's position as an international cultural metropolis.

Director of the Palace Museum Shan Jixiang, who came from Beijing to attend the ceremony, said that after the construction of the HKPM starts, the Palace Museum will start discussing which artifacts will be sent to Hong Kong for display and the two sides will collaborate on many aspects including multi-media, cultural creativity, and public lectures.