Tianyi Pavilion Library, China's oldest library, has opened to
visitors on weekend evenings, in an effort to satisfy public
demand.
The library, located in eastern Chinese city of Ningbo, opened
to the public from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. this Friday and Saturday. It
was the first time that the ancient library has held a nighttime
opening, the Hangzhou-based Dushikuaibao reported on
Sunday.
The decision was met with positive feedback. Visitors expressed
contentment at seeing the Ningbo's most famous point of interest at
night, and some were seen excitedly taking photos in the
garden.
The gate of Tianyi Pavilion
Library. Tianyi Pavilion Library, China's oldest library, has
opened to visitors on weekend evenings, in an effort to satisfy
public demand. (file photo from people.com.cn)
He Hongyu, vice director of Tianyi Museum, said many Ningbo
citizens and non-local tourists found that just half a day wasn't
enough time for them to fully utilize the library, while others had
expressed wishes to enjoy the evening scenes in Tianyi Pavilion's
garden.
A ticket for a night visit costs 10 yuan (US$ 1.36), only half
of the price of the day ticket. But visitors are advised to
preorder tickets, since only 2,000 lucky people are allowed to
enter the library each day.
The administration also selected more than 1,000 precious
ancient books from the total holdings of 160,000 to display in the
library. Most of them are first-class cultural relics never before
exhibited in public.
Next year, Tianyi Pavilion Library will open its digital
library. At that time, Internet users will have access to nearly
300,000 priceless ancient books online.
Built during the period from 1561 to 1566 in West Ningbo, Tianyi
Pavilion is a famous old library which once housed an enormous
collection of rare volumes, including block-printed and hand-copied
books and manuscripts. Most of the original collection was lost,
but a special agency has been created to restore the books in the
archives. The current collection totals 300,000 volumes, many of
which are original books of the library that have been
rediscovered, and a great number donated by individuals.
(CRI December 17, 2007)
