Model of Aurora Group's Expo 2010 Pavilion

Chinese jade culture through its 8,000-year history will take center stage at the Taiwan-based Aurora Group's Expo 2010 Pavilion.

Jade symbolizes the national character such as gentleness, perseverance and the pursuit of peace, and the Expo will provide a platform to help promote such hopes, Tan Baijuan, deputy director of the pavilion, said yesterday while unveiling the design.

The pavilion will feature rare exhibits such as a piece of 2.5-ton jade and Beijing Olympic medals made of fine jade from the Kunlun Mountains in Northwest China's Qinghai Province.

The theatre inside the pavilion will show Chinese myths and about 30 rare jade relics from the Aurora Museum will also be exhibited.

The biggest challenge now is to squeeze the soul of jade’s history spanning thousands of years into a short journey of 20 minutes, said Tan.

Aurora is committed to the protection and collection of Chinese culture relics and the promotion of cross-Strait research.

 Aurora Pavilion mascot "Danbao" makes its debut.

The 3,000-square-meter pavilion has also selected its mascot called "Danbao," a cute figure with big eyes. The pavilion can receive two million visitors during the six-month Expo.