Tens of millions visit Shaanxi museums

More than 35 million people visit Shaanxi's museums each year, according to the province's cultural heritage administration authority.

Guo Xianzeng, deputy director of Shaanxi provincial administration of cultural heritage, said the province has 253 museums at present, of which 145 belong to the local administration of cultural heritage, 47 are trade or industry museums and 61 are private.

"The complete museum system at the provincial, municipal and county level holds more than 500 various kinds of exhibitions every year, attracting more than 35 million people, of whom more than 16 million visited ticket-free museums," Guo said.

Continuous improvements are being made to museum management, including cultural and creative industry development, improvements to cultural relics exhibitions and construction of smart museums, Guo added.

Qiang Yue, director of Shanxi History Museum, said annual visitor numbers at his museum had increased from 500,000 when it first opened to 2.8 million today.

Shaanxi is an ancient city, having served as the capital for 13 Chinese dynasties in the past. It is home to a large number of buildings, tombs and relics left from more than 5,000 years of occupation. Shaanxi History Museum and Qin Terracotta Warriors and Horses Museum are known the world over and attract millions of visitors from both home and abroad every year.