The city of Dunhuang, in Gansu province was an important place on the old Silk Road, so when the city opened an International Cultural Expo, on Sept 20, Zhejiang province decided to use the opportunity to tell its own rich silk story to describe its unique place in the development of silk.

And it went all out, decorating the Zhejiang hall in the Dunhuang International Convention and Exhibition Center that covered a 436-square-meter area, with white walls and black roof-tiles that are akin to the water villages of Jiangnan (the area south of the Yangtze).

The Zhejiang area also has more than 60 silk-related items, samples of silk fabric, books about the Silk Road and silk clothes for today, displaying the origin and the development of silk and the Silk Road. And Wang Hesheng, a Wenzhou indigo print artist, will have live demonstrations of printing in the exhibition hall.

The international expo's sponsors are the Gansu government, China's Culture Ministry, the State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and TV, the National Tourism Administration, and the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade. It is the only national forum and exhibition of its kind for cultural exchanges between Belt and Road countries and regions.

Taking part are 85 countries, five international organizations, 95 foreign delegations, 16 domestic provinces and cities along the Silk Road, and 23 delegations from Macao, Hong Kong and Taiwan. It runs Sept 20 - Oct 10 and has more than 8,000 rare items on display.

Dunhuang International Convention and Exhibition Center, in Dunhuang, Gansu. [Photo/zjol.com.cn]

Displays in the Zhejiang exhibition hall at the international expo, in Dunhuang. [Photo/zjol.com.cn]