Mrs. Cong Jun (middle) and Mrs. Annan (left) meet with Metropolitan Museum representative

On 5 October, Mrs. Cong Jun, wife of Chinese Permanent Representative Wang Guangya to the United Nations, was the hostess of an exhibition tour of a landmark exhibition of ancient Chinese art entitled "China: Dawn of a Golden Age". More than 40 guests joined the tour, including wife of United Nations Secretary-General Kofi Annan and wives of permanent representatives of Security Council member states and of Asian countries, as well as leading members of the women organizations within the UN system. Cong Jun made the welcoming speech, and Metropolitan Museum representatives responsible for preparing this exhibition accompanied guests and informed them of the relevant cultural background and explained some major exhibits. The guests showed great interest in the whole exhibition, asked many questions and made some comments. They were amazed by the wonderful treasures. They all felt that these feature objects once again reflected the long history of Chinese art and the profound and extensive significance of Chinese culture.

It is reported that over 300 objects for this exhibition are from 46 cultural institutes in more than 10 provinces and cities in China. It is the largest ever exhibition of Chinese art held in the United States since the founding of the People's Republic of China.