HANGZHOU, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- A ceremony was held Friday to mark the inauguration of a museum containing the remains of a royal palace dating back to the Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) in Hangzhou, east China's Zhejiang Province.

The museum containing Deshou Palace, or the Palace of Morals and Longevity, covers approximately 21,000 square meters, with a building area of about 12,000 square meters and a palace display area of more than 4,000 square meters.

The remains were discovered in the 1980s. An area of nearly 7,000 square meters was uncovered after four archaeological excavations. Finds included large palace foundations, brick roads, rock garden foundations and drainage facilities. More than 8,000 pieces of cultural artifacts and building components from various periods were also discovered, with porcelain accounting for the highest proportion of finds.

In 2020, a project was launched to protect and display the palace site. Thanks to advanced cultural artifact protection technology, more than 4,000 square meters of the palace remains are now on display as they originally appeared.

The palace had vast gardens and some of the most exquisite architecture of the Southern Song Dynasty, securing it an important position in the history of ancient Chinese architecture and horticulture.

The museum will open to the public on a trial basis on Nov. 22.