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XI'AN: Zhang Haofu, 47, a resident in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, has his own way of celebrating the 80th birthday of Chinese People's Liberation Army: holding an exhibition displaying some 100 suits of military uniforms.

The exhibition, held in a retired military officers' residential community in the city, attracted many retired veterans, servicemen and local residents.

Zeng Yong, a fourth grader, says that he was glad to have a chance to see the genuine old uniforms, which he'd seen in textbooks.

Chen Shengyu, a retired air force officer, was overwhelmed with emotion when he saw one of the uniforms on display. He used to wear it.

It is only one fifth of Zhang's total collection, and all the more than 500 suits of the uniforms for the navy, army and air forces were in use at one time or another since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, Zhang says.

Zhang says he has had special military infatuation from his teenage years. His father was a serviceman, and he grew up in a military compound. He was in active service from 1979 to 1982 in Northwest China's Gansu Province, and started to collect old uniforms in 1982.

"I was helping my father to put his clothes and uniforms in order when I had the idea of collecting military supplies," he recalls. "It has become my greatest love since then."

Since then, he has traveled more than 50,000 kilometers to nine municipalities, provinces and regions to collect the military uniforms.

The first set, dating back to 1948, came from a comrade-in-arms of Zhang's father's, Wu Jiansong, who joined the People's Liberation Army that year. Along with the uniform, the old veteran passed on his memories of the battles and marches.

"He told me it was just like sending his beloved child to others when he handed me the uniform," Zhang recalls.

The oldest uniform, made of yellow cotton, was not included in the exhibition. The artifact is fragile now and has to be handled with great care, says Zhang, who works at a local firm as a driver.

He spends a good amount of his meager income, about 600 yuan ($80) a month, to expand his collections.

Once he learned that a military uniform enthusiast in Central China's Henan Province kept a range of general officers' suits from the 1950s. He traveled there and paid 5,000 yuan ($657) for it. "It is the most expensive one in my collection," Zhang says.

Zhang's wife Liu Chunming says that they argued a lot because she thought "it was meaningless".

But Zhang says: "Each one has a meaningful story and in the story are battles and heroes."

And the diversities of the military uniforms offer glimpses into different historical eras, Zhang says.

For instance, the early period of 1960s was a difficult time for the Chinese economy and it was reflected in the uniforms, he said. The uniforms made in the 1960s were cumbersome yet especially washable and durable, so they could be used for longer time.

The designs and makings of the different uniforms mirror the country's economic and social development, Zhang says.

"The history of the military uniform is part of the history of modern China, and the progress of military uniforms can reflect from one side the historical changes and social development," says Luo Fuming, an education expert and professor from Shaanxi Education College.

Zhang says that he is always worried about how to better preserve his collection of 500 suits, which occupies half of his 40-square-meter apartment. "I hope I can build a museum of military uniforms," Zhang says. "That is my dream."

(China Daily 08/02/2007 page18)