According to the local Cultural Relic Bureau, the renovation work of Guge Kingdom ruins in Zanda County, Ngari Prefecture, southwest Tibet Autonomous Region has been completed and passed the professional examination after three years' efforts.

The ruins of the Guge Kingdom on the outskirts of Zanda County in southwest China's Tibetautonomous region date back to some 1,000 years ago.

To prevent the historical relics from falling into disrepair, the local authority has allocated 57.44 million yuan (9.3 mln U.S. dollars) to renovate the ruins from 2011 and set up a management station to patrol and maintain the premises.

The renovation work mainly includes repairing and consolidating the cultural relic architectures, regulating the drainage system of the ruins, and protecting and restoring murals.

Mural restoration is the most important part of the relic protection project. Some of the murals with over 600 years' history became to fall off due to natural erosion. The chief of the Cultural Relic Bureau of Zanda County said, the restoration work sticks to the principle of "repairing the relic by keeping its original style" and 1,270 square meters of murals have been renovated.

The Guge Kingdom, an ancient kingdom estimated to have existed between the 9th and 17th centuries in what is known today as Zanda County, is famed for its ruins, which are the largest ruins and also best preserved artifacts from the kingdom, including color paintings, clay sculptures and stone sculptures.

The Guge Kingdom used to be the region's center ofcultural and economical development. Known as the "Old Summer Place of Tibet", it is the cradle of many ancient crafts, including carpentry, wall painting, ceramics and textile technology.

Photo shows the ruins of the Guge Kingdom in Zanda County of Ngari Prefecture, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. Photo/bbs.fengniao]

Photo shows the ruins of the Guge Kingdom in Zanda County of Ngari Prefecture, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. Photo/bbs.fengniao]

Photo shows the ruins of the Guge Kingdom in Zanda County of Ngari Prefecture, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. Photo/bbs.fengniao]

Photo shows the ruins of the Guge Kingdom in Zanda County of Ngari Prefecture, southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. Photo/bbs.fengniao]