Equine-themed exhibition held at Beijing Capital Museum

Beijing Capital Museum is holding a horse-themed exhibition in honor of the coming new year.

Beijing Capital Museum is holding a horse-themed exhibition in honor of the coming new year. There are many interesting items on display, including a section of riddles involving the Monkey King.

Welcoming the Year of the Horse on the Chinese Zodiac, the Beijing Capital Museum has some of their rarest items on display. More than 80 percent of it is meeting the public for the very first time.

This figure for example was made in the Tang Dynasty, some 15 hundred years ago. And if you want to learn more about how to ride a horse, here's a manual from the Qing Dynasty.

"It's such a well-planned exhibition. I brought my son here today and he finds it very interesting," one visitor said.

"I never knew there were so many kind of horses before. I really learnt a lot today," another visitor said.

The exhibition is divided into several sections. Besides the ancient items, there is also a section dedicated to paintings of horses, including works by late Chinese painter Xu Beihong. The horses he painted are lean and muscular, with "an air of tragedy". Each ink stroke tells of the turbulent times in which Xu lived.

"The stories and legends related to horses in history are truly abundant. And a lot of Chinese idioms and proverbs are also inspired by horses. We hope to surround visitors with stories and traditions of the Chinese zodiac at this exhibition," said Zhang Jie, exhibition organiser at Beijing Capital Museum.

And there 's also a special riddles section. Here's an interesting one: What position does the monkey king take in the Heavenly Palace? Here's a hint: He's in charge of all the horses. And there are many more riddles to crack at the Beijing Capital Museum.