Cats of Forbidden City feature in book series

The Palace Museum, also known as the Forbidden City, will launch cat-themed cartoon books, as well as other cultural products.

Wang Yamin, head of the Forbidden City Publishing House, says the upcoming series will include two stories related to "royal cats" in the palace. Once a residence of emperors, the Forbidden City has massive, well-preserved wooden buildings. Wang says preventing rats from damaging the architecture and cultural relics has long been an important topic.

Raising cats has been a tradition in the Forbidden City over the past 600 years.

For years, when the compound was closed to visitors, guard cats roamed its empty lanes every night in search of their archenemy - mice.

A crowdfunding project related to the cat-themed cartoon books and cultural products has been launched. The creations are expected to debut at the end of the year.

Xinhua

(China Daily Global 11/07/2019 page16)