CHINA will establish a national protection center for ancient murals in June in the northwestern province of Gansu to improve protection for the heritage, a researcher said Friday.

A total of 34 million yuan (US$ 4.9 million) would be poured into the project based at the Dunhuang Academy, an institute specializing in the protection of grottoes and the restoration of murals and cultural relics, said Wang Xudong, the academy’s deputy chief.

The money would be provided by the Ministry of Science and Technology, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, the Gansu Provincial Government and the academy.

Dunhuang, a booming town on the ancient Silk Road, is home to more than 800 grottoes that are at least 1,600 years old. The Mogao Grottoes, known as the Thousand Buddha Caves, were added to the World Heritage List in 1987. Altogether, 735 caves have been found and frescos on the inside walls cover an area of 45,000 square meters.

China has a large number of ancient murals, as represented by the Mogao Grottoes frescos, but many of them have been damaged by natural erosion, human activities and a lack of systematic protection, Wang said.

The center will focus on developing technological methods and training special personnel for the protection of cultural heritage, according to the researcher.

With some 80 staff, the center will conduct the research in cooperation with other domestic research institutes such as Lanzhou University and Zhejiang University.