A total of 106 cultural relics from China will be shipped to Athens of Greece for exhibition when the 2004 Olympic Games are held there in August.  

All compulsory customs clearance procures for the shipment have been finished and the relics will leave the country Saturday, said a female clerk surnamed Weng with Huaxie Int'l Fine Art Freight Services Co. Ltd., which will be responsible for the out- and in-bound transport of the relics.

The relics, most of which have never been put on public display in the Chinese mainland, include 20 items enjoying top state protection, and are packed into 12 specially-made wooden boxes. They have a combined weight of 1,761 kg and are certified to be worth US$12.86 million.

In return, a group of state treasures of Greece will be sent for exhibition in the Chinese capital in 2008 when the 29th Olympic Games are held in Beijing, said sources from the Beijing Municipal Cultural Relic Bureau.

(Xinhua News Agency May 15, 2004)