Mound tombs found in East China

More than 50 mound tombs have been found in East China's Zhejiang province, which moves forward the history of mound tombs by 400 to 500 years to the south of the Yangtze River.

The tombs, unearthed at Sanqiao village, Deqing county, are believed to be from the Shang Dynasty to the Warring States Period (c. 16th century-221 BC), says Zheng Jianming, a researcher with the provincial Cultural Relics and Archaeological Research Institute. Archaeologists say such tombs are atypical of Zhejiang and nearby regions.

Wine producer starts charity foundation

Fenjiu Wine Group, a Shanxi-based wine producer, has established a public welfare foundation under its name. It announced the move in Beijing on Monday.

In September 2010, the group held a charity event and auctioned 20 bottles of treasured Fenjiu liquor for 30.76 million yuan ($4.67 million), setting a new record for liquor auctions.

The foundation, set up with the money earned from the event, will soon host a series of activities, including a competition in Chinese calligraphy, a campaign to help poverty-stricken students and an anti-drunken-driving campaign.

The group also plans to hold a world liquor expo in 2015 in Taiyuan, capital of Shanxi, to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Fenjiu wine's award in the Panama World Expo in 1915.

Traces of unknown culture discovered

Archaeologists have in the past two months discovered more than 150 tombs, dating back 3,000 years, in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region.

The tombs, covering a total of 10,000 square meters, were discovered near Hami city, which sits on the road to the rural Tarim Basin, and also along the ancient Silk Road linking Asia and Europe. Pottery and wooden objects have been excavated from the tombs, according to the Hami City Cultural Relics Bureau.

The burial customs associated with these objects, as well as the shape of the tombs, are different from those discovered before, suggesting the relics belong to a different culture, says Yakupjan Baitulla, director of the bureau.

Hainan promoted through calligraphy

Hainan province will gather more than 200 Chinese calligraphers and painters for a major event aimed at promoting the ancient art forms and the island province from Feb 24 to 26 in Haikou.

The event includes an exhibition, onsite creation, seminars and auctions, according to the Hainan Provincial Cultural, Radio, Press, Publication and Sports Department.

Ground-breaking director dies at 90

Huang Zumo, director of the Chinese movie Romance on Lushan Mountain died on Saturday night in Shanghai. The 90-year-old died of heart failure at a local hospital, a spokesman with the Shanghai Film Group Corporation said.

Huang is most remembered for Romance on Lushan Mountain, a 1980 film about two lovers forced to separate owing to the opposing political views of their families, set in the picturesque Lushan Mountain.

The movie won Huang great fame and popularity and was regarded as a landmark, since it was the first new China-made film that included a kissing scene.

A sequel, titled Romance on Lushan Mountain 2010 and directed by Zhang Yu, who played the heroine in the 1980 film, was made in 2010 as a tribute to the original.

Spring Festival show staged in Chicago

Chinese artists offered a grand cultural feast on Friday in Chicago, in celebration of the Chinese Spring Festival.

The artists from "Embracing China", an art group under All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese, sang patriotic songs, such as I and My Motherland and The Chinese, and folk songs like The Jasmine Flower and Hometown Accent and Hometown Love. They also presented traditional programs, such as a hand-shadow play.

Qiao Wei, vice chairman of All-China Federation of Returned Overseas Chinese, and Chinese Consul General Yang Guoqiang attended the celebration gala. Before coming to Chicago, "Embracing China" performed in six other US cities.

China Daily / Xinhua