Experts are making an appeal to authorities to allow the restoration of the historical Zhalan Cemetery where 50 Western missionaries -- including Matteo Ricci, the first Jesuit missionary to succeed in securing a foothold for Christianity in China during the late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) -- are buried.

Wang Canchi, a Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) Beijing Committee member, has proposed a renovation project for presentation at the ongoing Second Session of the 10th CPPCC Beijing Committee.

"The move is vital to let more people know the history of cultural interaction between China and the West since the 17th century," said Wang.

"I suggest in my proposal that the Zhalan Cemetery should be thoroughly rehabilitated, including restoring some dilapidated tombstones and stone statuaries," said Wang, who is also a researcher with the Beijing Academy of Social Sciences.

Wang said Matteo Ricci, an Italian missionary who stayed at China for nearly 30 years, is a pivotal historical figure because he initiated the interactions between China and the West that have taken place for the past 400 years.

He said Ricci introduced Western knowledge into China in many fields, such as astronomy, geography, mathematics, physics, chemistry, medicine, architecture and irrigation.

Meanwhile, Ricci's letters and memoirs that are written in Latin on his impressions of China and experiences in the country provided Europeans with a basic knowledge of Chinese culture, Wang added.

When Ricci died in 1610 in Beijing, the emperor Wanli of the Ming Dynasty made a special exception to allow Ricci -- an esteemed foreigner -- to be buried in the capital city for his great contributions. Generally, foreigners who died in China had to be buried in Macao according to the code of the Ming Dynasty.

After that, a number of Western missionaries were buried in the Zhalan Cemetery near the tomb of Ricci during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), such as Adam Schall von Brll from Germany and Ferdinand Verbiest from Belgium.

After nearly 400 years' time, the Zhalan Ceremony, now located at the Beijing Administrative College, is a city-level protected cultural relic and there are 49 tombstones remaining memorializing missionaries from eight European countries.

Wang suggested that after they are rehabilitated, the Zhalan Cemetery should be opened wider for tourists and there should be an exhibition at the nearby Wensheng Monastery to illustrate the history of the exchanges between China and the West.

Wang also prepared several other motions relating to cultural relics, such as the salvage of traditional Chinese courtyards and the reconstruction of Di'anmen, which was built in 1420 as the north gate of the Imperial City.

It was demolished in 1954 for urban construction.

(China Daily February 17, 2004)