Restoration team races against time to preserve ancient palm-leaf manuscripts in Xizang

The Palm-leaf Manuscripts, among the world's oldest Buddhist texts, contain valuable records of culture, philosophy, history, and science from South and Central Asia, and a restoration team is racing against time to preserve these ancient treasures.

Uniquely inscribed on leaves rather than paper or parchment, the palm-leaf manuscripts were primarily written in Sanskrit.

Centuries ago, monks, translators, and pilgrims carried these manuscripts from India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka to Xizang in southwest China.

Xizang Autonomous Region is now home to numerous precious palm-leaf manuscripts. Over 29,000 leaves are stored inside the Potala Palace alone, making it the most concentrated collection of its kind in China. But time has taken its toll on these manuscripts.

"The greatest challenge lies in the existing damage to the palm-leaf manuscripts, including fiber fraying and lifting, breakage, and traces of improper past repairs. We are particularly worried that these conditions may further worse,” said Leng Benkai, assistant curator at the Cultural Relics Conservation Section of Potala Palace Administration.

Palm-leaf manuscripts were once beyond repair until the formation of a restoration team several years ago. They came in with the help of intangible cultural heritage inheritors.

To date, the team have completed cataloging and condition surveys for 465 volumes, a total of 29,400 leaves of palm-leaf manuscript relics.

They have also organized and typeset illustrations from 37 volumes and carried out digital scanning of 244 volumes.

"We conduct high-resolution scans to fully document both the overall condition of the palm-leaf manuscripts and the inscriptions on them," said Leng.

The restoration team's mission isn't just to repair these works, but to pass them on. Alongside the conservation work, local talent is being trained to do the same.

"Through the implementation of our project, we hope to enhance the Potala Palace's capacity for ancient cultural relic preservation, from restoration techniques to digital archiving," Leng added.

Restoration team races against time to preserve ancient palm-leaf manuscripts in Xizang

The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy announced on Friday that no unauthorized vessels are permitted to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, reaffirming its control over the strategic waterway amid escalating tensions and conflicting claims over the region's maritime access.

The U.S. statements regarding the Strait of Hormuz remaining open are "a lie designed to control oil prices," the IRGC Navy said in its statement.

The statement emphasized that the IRGC's control over this strategic waterway is absolutely secure. Iran has ordered that all vessels attempting to pass through the Strait of Hormuz without Iran's coordination are prohibited from passage. This operation will continue until the U.S. military's criminal acts against Iran completely cease and its due obligations are fulfilled.

Meanwhile, Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Friday that Iran and Oman had agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz under a coordinated plan.

He said that Oman initially supported Iran's stance but later adopted a more cautious approach. However, recent meetings have led both nations to reach the consensus to work toward reopening the shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz under mutually agreed terms, the president added.

Pezeshkian stressed that Iran is committed to ensuring that, should the strait be reopened within a specific framework, the United States must honor its commitments, including lifting sanctions, unfreezing Iranian assets, and halting Israel's hostile activities in Lebanon.

Pezeshkian also said that Iran is engaging with neighboring countries to establish a shared regional vision for cooperation and stability.

IRGC declares no unauthorized vessels allowed in Strait of Hormuz