China Pavilion at the 2025 Osaka Expo Photo: Courtesy of CCPIT

 
The display of lunar soil samples collected by China's space missions is one of the key highlights of the China Pavilion at the 2025 Osaka Expo, according to a press conference held by the China Council for the Promotion of International Trade (CCPIT) in Beijing on Wednesday. 

With the Expo set to open on April 13, the China Pavilion's all preparations have already been "largely completed," said Li Qingshuang, deputy head of CCPIT at the conference. Covering an area of approximately 3,500 square meters, the pavilion is one of the largest self-built foreign pavilions at the Osaka event in Japan. 

The China Pavilion features a diverse range of exhibits on traditional culture, ecological civilization, and technological innovation, reflecting that its theme "Building a Community of Life for Man and Nature: Future Society of Green Development" was fulfilled, Li noted.  

"Tian Ren He Yi," also meaning the "unity of heaven and people" is an exhibiting sector of the pavilion that focuses on traditional Chinese cultures. 

Inspired by Southern Song Dynasty (1127-1279) agricultural encyclopedia "Gengzhi Tu" (lit: Drawings of tilling and weaving), 46 ancient pictures have been recreated into digital scenes and art installations. They offer visitors with experiences of how agricultural traditions were invented and practiced in ancient China. 

Another multimedia installation related to China's agricultural legacy 24 Solar Terms will also be debuted. The manuscript for this digital work was created by 94-year-old art master Chang Shana, known as the "daughter of Dunhuang," who incorporated Dunhuang-inspired aesthetics into the digital piece.

Highlighting that the China Pavilion offers cultural experiences that "bridge ancient and modern times," Li revealed that digitalized Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) painting "Hai Cuo Tu," an illustrated catalogue of marine creatures, is among the upcoming cultural exhibits. 
"Whether showcasing agricultural civilization or marine cultures, these elements reflect China's ecological wisdom throughout history and serve as a curatorial tactic that naturally transitions into the exhibition's other thematic focus, modern ecological civilization," Zhang Liming, a museum and curatorial expert, told the Global Times. 

Another section of the pavilion will feature real-life examples, including egrets returning to restored habitats in Xiamen in East China's Fujian Province, conservation efforts in Hunan Province's Shibadong village in Central China, and ecological restoration along the Tarim River in Northwest China's Xinjiang.

Amongst diverse displays, lunar soil samples that were brought back by China's Chang'e-5 and Chang'e-6 missions from the moon, will be the "most precious exhibit that the China Pavilion presents to global visitors," said Li.

"Through specially designed glass lens installations, visitors can observe the differences of lunar soil samples that were collected from the moon's near and far sides." 

Additionally, Shenzhou-19 Taikonauts Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong, and Wang Haoze will engage with Japanese audiences via live video. Rare footages captured by Jiaolong, China's manned deep-sea submersible from 7,062 meters below sea level will also be revealed. Such works will be showcased at the pavilion's another sector, aiming to show China's innovative technologies. 

"The very process of curating and building the China Pavilion shows the country's commitment to sharing its all-round stories with the world," Wu Shengrong, director general of CCPIT's Department of Exhibition Management remarked. 

Wu also noted that the pavilion's construction incorporates sustainable innovation. 

The pavilion uses a reversible modular construction approach, with 3,700 prefabricated components featuring bamboo-veneer exterior walls. Polycarbonate roof panels had all been prefabricated in China before being transported to Japan for on-site assembly. 

Beyond its technological elements, the pavilion is also elegantly designed in the shape of bamboo scrolls. Its bamboo façade features inscriptions of 119 classic Chinese poems in various calligraphic styles. "The China Pavilion will undergo trial operations from this Friday to Sunday," said Wu, adding the dance drama The Crested Ibis will be staged at the China Pavilion's official opening on April 13. 

"China and Japan share profound cultural resonances. Shows and exhibits at the China Pavilion will enable visitors in Japan to experience these mutual connections firsthand and engage in meaningful on-site exchanges," Zhou Yongsheng, deputy director of the Japanese Studies Center at the China Foreign Affairs University, told the Global Times. 

One of the pavilion's missions is to promote China-Japan exchanges. A woodcarving art series depicts figures, historic encounters, and moments from more than 2,000 years of China-Japan friendship will be displayed at the site.

"Around 60 China-Japan sister cities will take the Expo platform to seek cooperation," Li emphasized.