Shiga Prefecture of Japan was the first international region that established friendship city ties with Hunan Province. 

A China-Japan bamboo slips cultural exchange meeting was recently held at the Civic Culture Hall of Ōtsu City, capital of Shiga Prefecture, as one of the closing events of a series of activities marking the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Hunan-Shiga friendship bond. 

Exhibitions, lectures, and hands-on activities were held to showcase the distinctive charm of the bamboo slip culture of ancient China, enhancing Shiga people's understanding of the 40-year-old friendship between the two regions. 

Japanese people visit the bamboo slips exhibition. 

A number of exquisite replicas of bamboo slips from the Changsha Bamboo Slips Museum were displayed at the Ōtsu City Museum of History. Japanese visitors were impressed by the bamboo slips of the Kingdoms of Wu and Chu respectively unearthed at Zoumalou and Xiyangpo, as well as those of the Qin and Han dynasties unearthed at Liye and Mawangdui. Through the bamboo slips, they learned about and appreciated the evolution of Chinese characters and the bamboo slips culture. 

Some Japanese visitors participated in the interactive workshop, trying their hand at making bamboo slips. The activity has improved Japanese people's understanding about Chinese bamboo slips culture and helped build closer ties between the people of the two countries. 

Japanese people try their hand at making bamboo slips and Chinese calligraphy. 

Li Equan, curator of the Changsha Bamboo Slips Museum, delivered a video speech. He introduced the process of making bamboo slips, and provided historical background, explaining their cultural connotations and research value, and providing an opportunity for Japanese people to understand ancient Chinese culture. 

Japanese people listen to Curator Li's speech. 

Hunan and Shiga established a friendly provincial-prefectural relationship in 1983 thanks to the "lake" bonds of the Dongting Lake and Biwa Lake. In August 2018, the Changsha Bamboo Slips Museum held a China-Japan High School Student Calligraphic Exchange Activity. Afterwards, Chinese and Japanese authorities agreed to regularly organize bamboo slips cultural exchange activities during the Chinese Spring Festival periods in order to deepen bilateral cooperation in cultural heritage fields and inject new vitality into the cultural exchanges between the two countries. 

Translator: Pang Yuehui

Chinese source: hunantoday