The Palace of Versailles signed a deal with the Forbidden City in Beijing last week for a 2024 exhibition about historic ties between France and China.
The announcement by the French institution came during President Emmanuel Macron’s visit to Beijing where he is hoping to steer China away from its increasingly close ties with Russia.
The exhibition — due to run April 1 to June 30 next year — will focus on how ties were forged in the 17th and 18th centuries, especially under king Louis XIV and emperor Kangxi with the arrival of French Jesuit priests at the Chinese court in 1685.
It was originally planned for 2020 but was delayed by the Covid-19 pandemic.
Coming 60 years after France re-established diplomatic ties with China, the show “is a sign of confidence for the future and the dialogue between our two cultures,” Catherine Pegard, who heads the palace, said.
She said it will bring together objects from both collections to show how exchanges between the two countries fostered French interest in Chinese philosophy, science and art. — AFP
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