Zhongnanhai, the office compound of China's central leadership, has been designated a "key site" of cultural protection, according to a government announcement Friday.

Located to the west of the Forbidden City, the historic royal garden of Zhongnanhai has been the headquarters of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the State Council, since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949.

Former Chinese leaders Mao Zedong, Zhu De, Liu Shaoqi and Zhou Enlai also had residences in the compound.

Zhongnanhai is one of 1,080 "key cultural relics sites" published Friday by the State Council, the central government. This is the sixth list of its kind.

"Zhongnanhai has witnessed important events in China's history. It is a key cultural relics site also for its cultural value," said Xie Chensheng, honorary chairman of the Chinese Academy of Cultural Relics Study.

The site was created during the Liao Dynasty (915-1125), then rebuilt and renovated continually during the subsequent Yuan (1279-1368), Ming (1368-1644) and Qing (1644-1911) dynasties.

The central government collected suggestions from experts on the protection of Zhongnanhai soon after it moved in. Over the past half century, different administrations had attached great importance to its protection, said 83-year-old cultural relics expert Luo Zhewen.

"The cultural relics in Zhongnanhai have mostly largely intact, although some were destroyed during the Cultural Revolution," Luo said.

Many protected sites and buildings were still used for offices and residences in China, just like the Zhongnanhai compound, said Luo. "The preservation of Zhongnanhai will set an example for the maintenance and protection of other sites across the nation."

"Its protection is the wish of many Chinese experts," he said.

The sixth list of key cultural relics sites also includes the Grand Beijing-Hangzhou Canal -- the world's oldest and longest canal still in use -- on which the construction began during the Spring and Autumn Period (770 BC-476 BC).

Another site is the the grave of Italian missionary Matteo Ricci (1552-1610) and other overseas missionaries. A Jesuit who arrived in Macao in 1582, Ricci introduced Western culture to China and reported news of China to Europe among other achievements during his 28-year stay, including drawing a map of the world map and making astronomical instruments.

Also listed is the starting place of the Red Army's epic Long March in the mid 1930s and the burial site of victims of the Nanjing Massacre by Japanese invaders in 1937.

The latest list brings the total national key cultural relics sites to 2,351.

Source: Xinhua