Palace Museum stages peony flower-themed exhibition

A man takes a photo of peony flowers at the Palace Museum in Beijing, April 12, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

The Palace Museum in Beijing is awash in the colors of 10,000 peony flowers from Luoyang, part of a flower-themed collaborated exhibition between the museum and Luoyang city's government.

The exhibition which began Tuesday and is being presented in two parts, is the first of its kind in the museum's history. The first part, the Luoyang Peony Flower exhibition, showcases 60 peony flower varieties, including some that are very rare, at Qianqingmen (Gate of Celestial Purity) Square, the square outside the Longzong Gate, and Cining Gong garden. The exhibition recreates the once-spectacular scene of blooming peony flowers in the ancient Forbidden City.

At the same time, the Peony Flower-themed Cultural Relic exhibition will be held in Zhaigong (Palace of Abstinence) and Yanxi Gong (Palace of Prolonging Happiness). A total of 186 relics are on display, including utensils decorated with peony flowers, and paintings and silks with peony flower themes.

The peony flower exhibition will end on Sunday, and the peony flower-themed exhibition will run through June 12.