The Terracotta Warrior exhibition at the National Museum Bangkok on Sunday Photo: IC

China's renowned Terracotta Warriors have been brought to Thailand for the first time for a three-month exhibition at the National Museum Bangkok.

The opening ceremony of the exhibition Qin Shi Huang, The First Emperor of China and Terracotta Warriors, was held on Sunday afternoon, after which many Thais flooded into the Siwamokkhaphiman Throne Hall to take a glimpse of the more than 2,000-year-old Terracotta Warriors, funerary sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang.

The exhibition collects 86 artifacts from 14 leading museums around Shaanxi Province, said Qian Jikui, deputy director of the Shaanxi Provincial Administration of Cultural Heritage, during the opening ceremony.

"We are trying to show people the history and culture of the Qin Dynasty (221BC - 206BC), from its beginning to its impact on the later history of China," Qian said.

Wissanu Krea-ngam, deputy prime minister of Thailand, said at the opening ceremony that this is a very rare opportunity to see the Terracotta Warriors and other Chinese artifacts of great value in Bangkok and he encourages Thais to take this chance to learn more about China's history and culture.

China has a long history and Qin Shi Huang is a prominent figure, the deputy prime minister said, adding, "We called China 'Chin' in Thai and it is assumed to derive from Qin, the name of Qin Shi Huang's empire, which reveals how influential Qin was."

He also hailed Thailand-China exchanges and friendship for hundreds of years and said the exhibition came at a great time as this year marks the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China and the 44th anniversary of the establishment of Thailand-China diplomatic relations.

Chinese Ambassador to Thailand Lyu Jian said during the opening ceremony that the exhibition marked that China-Thailand friendship have reached new height.

The Terracotta Army, discovered in 1974, reveals the sophistication of ancient Chinese civilization and its conservation demonstrates the development of Chinese technology, the Chinese ambassador noted, adding that the exhibition will further promote mutual understanding between the people of China and Thailand.

Thai Minister of Culture Itthiphol Kunplome told the Xinhua News Agency after the opening ceremony that the exhibition proves how close Thailand-China relations are.

Itthiphol said it is expected that 200,000 visitors will come to the event, which ends on December 15.

The exhibition attracted many Thais' attention on social media as many expressed their wishes to see it and thanked the efforts of both governments to make it happen.

Rakchaneewan, a Thai visitor told Xinhua, that she was moved after seeing the artifacts and she wishes the friendship between Thailand and China can last forever.