"Over the years, cultural heritage protection agencies, scientific research institutions and individuals from Japan, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and other countries, as well as Hong Kong and other regions, have brought equipment and funds, and advanced protection concepts and technologies to Dunhuang."

On Mar 14, He Xiaozu, Party Secretary of Gansu Provincial Department of Culture and Tourism, delivered a speech at the first Gansu dialogical Conference of Mayors, themed with "Cities, Culture, Creativity".

Attendees at the first Gansu dialogical Conference of Mayors, themed with "Cities, Culture, Creativity", held in Lanzhou on Mar 14 [Photo by Li Deyu for gs.ifeng.com]

According to He, the protection technologies of Dunhuang Cultural Heritage have not only rescued a large number of endangered ancient sites, but are also steering the course of Chinese cultural heritage protection research.

As early as the 1990s, the Dunhuang Academy has put forward the concept of "Digital Dunhuang". In 1994, the National Library of China has cooperated with its counterparts in the UK, France and other countries, to enable global scholars and the public to access the database and obtain high-quality images and catalogs of literature of Dunhuang for free.

Cultural products are on display during the event. [Photo by Li Deyu for gs.ifeng.com]

In recent years, the Dunhuang Museum has set up a multi-view digital museum with menu-style audio explanations, which allows people to view the collection wirelessly on computers, tablets and mobile phones.

Using Augmented Reality and Digital Twin technologies, the Dunhuang Research Institute has created an intelligent guide of the Mogao Grottoes and rolled out a series of digital cultural products.