Construction of a museum is to be started at Xigaze, Tibet Autonomous Region, within this year, according to a local official.

This will be the second largest museum in Tibet following the Tibet Museum in the regional capital Lhasa.

Basang, an official with the Xigaze Prefecture Culture Bureau, told Xinhua Tuesday that Xigaze is the place where Panchen lamas are seated for generations.

The official said that Xigaze prefecture has 283 palaces and temples. Five of them are under state-level protection and 16 of them are under regional-level protection.

Basang said that these palaces and temples boast hundreds of thousands of precious relics, dating from the Paleolithic period to the early years of the Republic of China (1912-1949).

These relics reflect the politics, economic development, military affairs, the development of culture, science and technology as well as social activities in Tibet in different historical periods, Basang explained.

The official pointed out, the relics also prove that Tibet has been an inseparable part of China since the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368).

He said, the local temples' ownership of the relics will remain unchanged after they are displayed in the museum.

The planned Xigaze Museum, covering 4,600 square meters, will consist of a showroom, a storehouse, a laboratory and rooms for relics disinfection, repair and for making specimens.

(People's Daily 05/22/2001)