ZJU Library, in partnership with the university’s School of Art and Archaeology, the Art and Archaeology Museum, and the Archives, was named among the second batch of national-level ancient book conservation centers, according to the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. The university library boasts a large collection of ancient texts, owns cutting-edge technologies, and is staffed with skilled cultural item restorers. The second batch of state ancient text restoration center consists of 21 relics hubs.

The library’s 180,000 volumes of books comprise publications dating back to the Republic of China period and earlier, including over 2,000 books (22,000 volumes) as rare editions. It also houses over 15,000 rubbings, 20 undisturbed documents from the Northern Dynasties’ Turpan regime, and more than 23,000 contracts back to the Ming and Qing dynasties.

The Ancient Books Division of ZJU Library opened in 2021 with the unveiling of a restoration lab, covering 150 square meters, equipped with spectrometers, paper fiber analyzers, low-oxygen insect control cabinets, and other advanced facilities. The library’s climate-controlled 50-square-meter paper repository houses 80,000 restored, age-old paper sheets in over 160 types.

The library’s restoring job places a focus on the preservation of the book’s original appearance, less tech-transformation, and the application of reversible materials. Technology is also a drive for protecting old texts. The lab crew, with the instructions of scientists, conducts research on paper artifacts and their materials. Artificial intelligence is also an adopted technology that helps restore and preserve ancient books.

The restoration lab is also a classroom for practice, offering a host of apprentice and experience activities to students, faculty, and alumni.