China should further strengthen security of subsequent overseas exhibitions of Chinese cultural relics, said an expert on Sunday, after a Terracotta Warrior statue that had been vandalized in the U.S. was returned to China.
The Terracotta Warrior that had its left thumb snapped off by a vandal at an exhibit in the U.S. was returned in early April, Zhou Kuiying, spokesman for the Shaanxi Administration of Cultural Heritage, announced, according to Guang Ming Daily on Thursday.
"The incident could have been avoided if the derelict security guard had fulfilled his duty. Chinese artifacts should be monitored by more cameras and more security measures should be provided in future exhibitions. The distance between the exhibits and museum visitors should also be moderated," Liu Zheng, a member of the China Cultural Relics Academy, told the Global Times.
There will be a claim for compensation after the suspect is sentenced in the US, Guang Ming Daily said.
Liu indicated that the compensation sum would be very large, while noting that "the sum could depend on classification of the heritage and damaged condition."
In order to protect extremely rare Chinese cultural relics, the country's cultural authorities have enlisted a total of 195 artifacts that are not allowed to be exhibited overseas, including the "Houmuwu Quadripod," an ancient Chinese sacrificial utensil.
The vandalized Terracotta Warrior statue is undergoing repairs in Shaanxi, Science and Technology Daily reported.
