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The Home Affairs Bureau's Antiquities and Monuments Office (AMO) has held an exhibition on the archaeological discoveries in Ma Wan to enable the public to learn more about Hong Kong's past.

Entitled "Archaeological Discoveries at Tung Wan Tsai North, Ma Wan - One of the 10 most important new archaeological discoveries in China, 1997", the exhibition was jointly opened by the Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr David Lan; and the Chairman of the Antiquities Advisory Board, Professor David Lung; and the Chairman of the Council of the Lord Wilson Heritage Trust, Mr Edward Ho today (Friday).

On display are the skeletal remains of early settlers and some 100 artefacts unearthed from the joint rescue excavation conducted by AMO and the Institute of Archaeology of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in the Mainland at the Tung Wan Tsai archaeological site on Ma Wan from June to November last year.

Speaking at the opening ceremony, Secretary for Home Affairs, Mr David Lan, said: "The excavation showed that Hong Kong 's earliest settlement dated back 5,000 years and it established beyond doubt Hong Kong's long and profound cultural and historical ties with the Mainland. Hong Kong people should feel proud about this."

The excavation was the first joint project of the Mainland and Hong Kong archaeologists after the re-unification in 1997. The most significant finding was the discovery of 20 prehistoric burial sites in which human skeletal remains were found in 15 of them. This provided invaluable data for the study of Hong Kong's prehistoric and racial development and its relationship with South China.

This February the excavation at Tung Wan Tsai North was selected as one of the 10 most important new archaeological discoveries in China by some 20 experts from the Mainland. This was a great encouragement to those involved in the project as it bestowed recognition of archaeological discoveries in Hong Kong.

He described the excavation as a successful cultural exchange programme between the Mainland and local institutions on cultural preservations.

A team of professional archaeologists from the Institute of Archaeology, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences joined hands with their local counterparts to launch a full-scale rescue excavation to salvage the artefacts and other remains. This provided an opportunity for cultural exchanges between the two groups of archaeologists.

Mr Lan also took the opportunity to thank Sun Hung Kai Properties Limited for financing the project and its plan to build an exhibition gallery on Ma Wan Island to display the important findings for public viewing.

"Tung Wan Tsai was only one of the some 200 known archaeological sites in Hong Kong. These sites are the key to unveiling the ancient history of Hong Kong and South China. I hope every citizen would learn to appreciate these valuable findings and its importance as part of Chinese people's heritage," he said.

The exhibition will last until August 31 at the AMO's Heritage Resource Centre at 136 Nathan Road, Tsim Sha Tsui. Admission is free.

To complement the exhibition, AMO has arranged five archaeological talks in the Centre on May 16, 23, 30 and June 20. Details can be obtained on 2721 2326 and 2594 5694.

End/Friday, May 15, 1998

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