China (Hainan) South Sea Museum offers free admission

The China (Hainan) South Sea Museum opens in Tanmen, Qionghai. [Photo/news.cn]

The opening ceremony of the China (Hainan) South Sea Museum was held in Tanmen, Qionghai, a county-level city in Hainan province, on April 26.

Several exhibitions concerning human history, natural ecology, and cultural heritages of the South China Sea are on display, featuring gifts marking the 30th anniversary of Hainan as a province and a special economic zone.

Construction of the museum began in May 2016 and the acceptance certificate was issued in June last year. The museum aims to positively respond to the Belt and Road Initiative and facilitate cultural exchanges among the countries and regions along the Maritime Silk Road.

With a gross building area of 70,593 sq m, the museum possesses over 70,000 historical relics, archival sources, biological specimens and ship models of past dynasties. The State Administration of Cultural Heritage will add 22 cultural relics to the museums' collections to support its development.   

Students make models of ancient merchant ships at the China (Hainan) South Sea Museum. [Photo by Zhao Yingquan/news.cn] 

Besides 10 exhibition halls, the museum also has a historic preservation and restoration center, a repair laboratory for cultural relics found in water, an appliance repair room and a painting and calligraphy repair room.

Moreover, the museum has designed and sold over 200 kinds of cultural and creative products encompassing decorations, daily necessities, children's products and stationeries.

Visitors can enter the museum for free with valid identity certificates between 9 am to 5 pm from Tuesday to Sunday.