A total of 6 million people have visited the Shanghai Museum by yesterday since it was opened in the People's Square five years ago, Wenhui Daily reported.

The number of visitors exceeded the total it had received for 43 years before it was moved from the site on Yan'an Road to the People's Square. Some 5 million had visited the museum during from 1952 to 1995.

The new construction covering some 38,000 square meters are now among the most popular cultural constructions in the city, attracting visitors of all ages interested in its outstanding designs and contents.

Now about 90 percent of the visitors are from home and 10 percent abroad. Before, when the museum was still on the former site, 70 percent were foreigners and 30 percent domestic visitors.

A great more people buy tickets themselves to visit the museum nowadays, compared with before when about 90 percent were team visits organized by work units. The number of team visitors decreased to a record low of 10 percent during past seven months this year.

(Eastday.com.cn 08/17/2001)