Tibet makes strides in preserving ancient books at Potala Palace

LHASA, Oct. 5 (Xinhua) -- The Potala Palace management authority has announced significant achievements in preserving and utilizing its extensive collection of ancient books and documents, thanks to a special project.

The project was launched by the central government in late 2018 with a dedicated fund of 300 million yuan (41.8 million U.S. dollars) to conserve and explore the use of ancient books and documents at the Potala Palace in Lhasa, the capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region.

So far, the project has archived more than 12.3 million folios from 3,499 collections of ancient books and documents, and digitally scanned 3,152 folios from 41 collections of rare pattra-leaf scriptures, according to Butri, an official with the Potala Palace administration office.

The office recently published a series of books presenting the latest research findings on the valuable ancient texts in the palace's collection.

"Ancient books and documents are important carriers of ancient cultures, with extremely high historical, scientific and cultural value," Butri said, adding that he believes the research results will play a pivotal role in further promoting the preservation of Potala Palace scriptures and the interpretation of ancient texts in Tibet.

The Potala Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage site, stands as a treasure house of Tibetan history, culture and art.

It houses nearly 40,000 collections of ancient books and documents in multiple languages. Among the most significant collections are scriptures written on around 30,000 pattra leaves.