The Palace Museum in Beijing hosts a charity auction on April 2. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily]

Wuxi citizens will be able to feast their eyes on pairs of Sky and Longevity Lanterns from the Palace Museum in Huishan Ancient Town thanks to a charity auction held in Beijing on April 2.

Bao Jianqiang from Xihui Scenic Area in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, took part in the event and was lucky enough to buy the Sky Lanterns for 10.6 million yuan ($1.58 million) and the Longevity Lanterns for 8 million yuan.

The Palace Museum in Beijing, China's imperial palace from 1420 to 1911, is better known globally as the Forbidden City. It hosted the charity auction to earn money to sponsor several poverty-stricken counties across Shanxi province, the Inner Mongolia autonomous region and the Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region.

Bao said they have visited the Palace Museum several times since March, showing their sincerity and determination in bringing the palace's culture to Wuxi city and helping Xihui Scenic Area transform its commercial practices.

A pair of Sky Lanterns and a pair of Longevity Lanterns, which were made last year for the Spring Festival special exhibition, are auctioned at the event. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily]

Sky Lanterns and Longevity Lanterns -- all more than 10-meters-high -- were once set up in imperial era for major celebrations. However, the shrinking treasury made the emperor stop the costly tradition in 1840.

Employees at the Palace Museum spent months rummaging through historical files and the inventory of the museum to find models, original materials, and production methods for the lanterns. They finally set them up in front of the Palace of Heavenly Purity, a key structure in the Forbidden City, for this year's Spring Festival after a 179-year hiatus.

It is said that new pairs of such lantern poles will be made again this year, and are planned as new additions to every Spring Festival, meaning this auction will be an exclusive one-off.

Bao also wished to take the opportunity to deepen cooperation with the Palace Museum and promote the development of tourism in Wuxi city.

Shan Jixiang (left), director of the Palace Museum, issues the certification to Bao Jianqiang from Wuxi's Xihui Scenic Area in the Palace Museum?on?April 2. [Photo by Jiang Dong/China Daily]