A forum on scientific and technological innovation of cultural relics was held in Lanzhou City, northwest China's Gansu Province on Friday, one day ahead of this year's Cultural and Natural Heritage Day of China, which falls on Saturday.

The forum features the periodical research results on the protection and utilization of cultural heritage, aiming at boosting innovation of cultural relics in the area of science and technology and promoting academic exchange and achievement sharing.

A total of 13 project leaders or key representatives delivered academic reports at the forum on topics including research on the origin of Chinese civilization, research and development of key technologies for digital restoration of Silk Road cultural relics, research on key technologies related to fragile bronze ware protection, and research and development of key technologies for the protection of marine wooden relics.

About 500 delegates attended the forum online and offline. 

Taking scientific and technological innovation as the driving force to promote the high-quality development of cultural relics in China has gradually become the consensus of the whole industry, according to Lou Jing, deputy director-general of the Department of Science and Technology at the State Administration of Cultural Heritage. 

Scientific and technological innovation has also been adopted in exhibitions of cultural relics.

Gansu Provincial Museum in Lanzhou is holding special exhibitions of cultural relics on the occasion of Cultural and Natural Heritage Day, including using technological devices to present digital cultural relics, providing visitors with a better experience and more interactivity. 

"We have collected the digital data of cultural relics in our museum with three-dimensional scanning technology and two-dimensional high-definition shooting technology," said Li Yanqiang, director of the network center of Gansu Provincial Museum.

"So far, we have collected data of nearly 2,000 cultural relics. The data lay a solid foundation for future exhibitions, studies, protection and public educational activities," Li added.