Pic story of silk restorers at Suzhou Silk Museum in China's Jiangsu

Suzhou Silk Museum staff members Chen Yanlu (L) and Meng Xiaochou arrange a silk garment dating back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. Restoration of this cultural relic has been ongoing for more than three months.

Silk cultural relics are hard to preserve and prone to suffer from conditions such as fragmentation, decay, embrittlement and fading. The job of a silk restorer is to bring such cultural relics back to life with the help of modern technology and traditional craftsmanship.

For Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Chen Yanlu and her colleagues, the restoration of cultural relics means restoring their original appearance as much as possible, while reserving the room for future reprocessing if more refined techniques appear in the future. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff members Chen Yanlu (L) and Meng Xiaochou arrange a silk garment dating back to the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. Restoration of this cultural relic has been ongoing for more than three months. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Chen Yanlu uses a magnet to flatten a silk cultural clothing against an iron workbench in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Chen Yanlu dyes a piece of material for restoring cultural relic in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Chen Yanlu tests the color of a cultural relic in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Chen Yanlu (C) and her team members Meng Xiaochou (L) and Zhang Guohua pose for a group photo in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 19, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Chen Yanlu prepares dyes for silk garment restoration in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Meng Xiaochou (R) introduces a cultural relic she restored years ago for her colleague Chen Yanlu in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Chen Shuo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Chen Yanlu uses a portable microscope to analyze fabrics in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Meng Xiaochou restores a silk garment at Suzhou Silk Museum in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff member Chen Yanlu operates a machine to disinfect a silk garment to be restored in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Bo)

Suzhou Silk Museum staff members Chen Yanlu (L) and Meng Xiaochou discuss restoration plan for cultural relics in Suzhou, east China's Jiangsu Province, May 18, 2025. (Xinhua/Li Bo)