A competition to copy murals created during the Tang Dynasty (AD 618-907) began at the Shaanxi History Museum on Wednesday.

Organized by the China National Art Gallery, Shaanxi Provincial Heritage Administration and Xi'an Academy of Fine Arts the event is sponsored by the museum.

"The contest is designed to reproduce the murals made more than 1,000 years ago and the copies have the theme of cultural exchange between China and Western countries in ancient times," said museum official Liu Jiangying.

Running until the end of December, the contest's winning copies will be displayed in the museum next year.

Found in royal tombs of the Tang Dynasty in the 1950s in Shaanxi province the colorful murals were collected by the Shaanxi History Museum. In 2011 the museum built an exhibition hall with conditions of constant temperature and humidity capable of protecting the vulnerable works to display 500 which covered an area of more than 1,000 sq meters.

In order to let more art enthusiasts have the opportunity to study and discuss mural art, the first such contest was held in 2013, further expanding the social influence of the ancient treasures.