Book Restorers Touch History

—Keeping ancient manuscripts in tip-top condition requires expertise and passion—

Whenever Song Jing visits a museum, she makes a point of checking out the section on ancient books. In addition to appreciating the wisdom    1     (hide) in those historical volumes, she focuses on how they are bound and presented.

Song works in the restoration division for ancient books at the National Library of China which is home to about 3 million ancient manuscripts, many of which require restoration before they can see    2    light of day again. Some books have suffered great loss. Take, for example, a 16th-century copy of Yongle Dadian. Only 3.5 percent of the total publication are known    3     (exist).

The process of repairing ancient books is complex. Day after day, Song and her colleagues are fully immersed    4    the duty of handling and healing the old books. Thanks to cutting-edge technology, restorers can create paper    5     (incredible) similar to the original version. However, the old-fashioned techniques still come in handy sometimes.    6     (fear) the chemicals in commercially produced paste might harm the books, restorers have to make the glues by themselves. The paste needs to be mixed right before the repair,    7    it will go bad because of sitting for too long.

The valuable cultural heritage that restorers have preserved    8     (serve) as the best evidence of Chinese civilization. Recently, the library has sent    9     (it) specialists like Song to deliver speeches in colleges and on TV. “I’m glad to see such    10     (arrange) and I hope to inspire people to find their passion in the preservation of our traditional culture,” Song says.

A visit to the Confucius Temple

As you walk into the Shandong Arts and Crafts Exhibition Center, you    1    (greet) by a magnificent sight: a larger-than-life rabbit. With an auspicious cloud atop, the Tuzi Wang, or “lord rabbit”, is dressed in a golden helmet, armor and a flowing red robe.

The creator of the rabbit figure is Yang Feng,    2    inheritor of this Shandong intangible cultural heritage.    3    (locate) on the second floor of the exhibition center is his studio    4    he displays his works, in different designs and sizes, as well as the legends and stories associated with them.

After dedicating two decades to perfecting his craft, Yang is committed to     5    (promote) the traditional skill of creating the lord rabbit in his own unique style. “For me, crafting the rabbit is not just a job,    6    a lifelong career that I am    7    (passion) about,” he says.

Hou Yangjun, the deputy secretary-general of the Chinese Folk Literature and Art Association,    8    (explain) that the practice of worshiping the moon with the rabbit god can be traced back     9     the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) and was practiced     10    (main) in Beijing, Tianjin and Shandong’s Jinan and Qingdao.

9 . Zhang Qian, an outstanding diplomat (外交官) and explorer in the Han dynasty, with a pioneering and adventurous________as well as a strong and unyielding character, was ________as the “pioneer of the silk road”,   “the first Chinese to open the eyes to see the world” and “the Columbus of the________”.

As early as 2,000 years ago, Zhang Qian was_________on a mission to seek allies (同盟国) in the west of China to________the enemies in northern tribes. Along the way, no matter how difficult the environment was, his________was firm. But soon Zhang was ________ by the Huns just as he left Han territory and was held prisoner for a dozen years.

After an eleven spring and autumn recycling, the Huns’________ became loose. Hence, Zhang ran away with his personal_________. They continued to travel west without any dry food and drinking water. Due to the excellent skill of shooting arrows, they ________ by eating birds and animals along the way. After several days, they ________ arrived in Amu Darya Area. However, people there enjoyed their life and didn’t want any war. Though Zhang didn’t finish his mission, he brought back precious_________ of the Western Regions.

Due to the________of Zhang Qian, the Silk Road started. Through his diplomatic practice, the bridge of friendly exchanges between the Han and western countries was________, and the cultural and economic exchanges between the cast and the west were promoted. Zhang’s journey to the Western Regions breathed new ________ into the civilization and progress of the whole world.

Traditional Chinese tea-making techniques were     1     (official) recognized by UNESCO on November 29, when the techniques and social practices     2     (add) to the List of Intangible Cultural Heritage. With 43 items (项目) on the list, China keeps its No.1 position in the field.

With the application started in March 2021, the list of world intangible cultural heritage has recognized the knowledge, skills, and practices     3     is about the management of tea gardens, picking of tea leaves, hand-made processing, and the drinking and     4     (share) of tea.

The result has been widely praised     5     the Chinese people and experts because it is     6     important step for conservation and promotion of traditional tea culture.

“Chinese tea culture     7     (become) widely known by people in many     8     (country) around the world years ago through the ancient Silk Road. The     9     (success) application of Chinese tea-making can further help improve     10     (it) international influence,” Zheng Changling, general secretary of the China Folk Culture Innovation and Development Center, told the Global Times.