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Unremitting though this attempt at recovery has been, however, there have been further exertions in recent years to acquire such works as Zhang Xian's "Landscape with Poems (Shi yong tu)" (Song Dynasty), Nai Xian's calligraphy "Ancient poem on south of the city" (Cheng nan yong gu shi) (Yuan Dynasty), Shen Zhou's landscape handscroll "After Huang Gongwang's 'Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains'" (Fang Huang Gongwang fuchun shan ju tu) (Ming Dynasty), Shi Tao's ink bamboo "Calling Wen Yuke" (Gao hu Yu ke tu) (Qing Dynasty). The first two were spirited out of the palace by the last emperor Puyi on the excuse of bestowing them on his brother Pu Jie; they fell into the hands of others and only now have been returned to their rightful place in the Palace Museum collection.

From the 1950s onwards, the museum's existing storehouses were completely overhauled to provide a damp-proof and insect-proof environment for the treasures. In the 1990s a new storehouse with a capacity of over 600,000 items was built, equipped with controls for maintaining constant temperature and humidity, as well as safeguards against fire and theft. A workshop was established in the 1950s and expanded in the 1980s to encompass a scientific Conservation Department. These not only continued traditions of craftsmanship, but also drew upon scientific discoveries to facilitate the restoration of damaged relics. In the past few decades the Conservation Department has treated as many as 110,000 objects from the Palace Museum and other public collections. Besides its continuous refurbishment of the main courts and halls, the museum has opened galleries to display bronzes, porcelain, crafts, paintings and calligraphy, jewelry, and clocks to expand the scope of its exhibitions. A number of thematic shows have been held in galleries devoted to temporary exhibitions; in recent years these have included such acclaimed ones as "A Comparison of Authentic and Counterfeit Paintings and Calligraphy", "Genuine and Imitation Examples of Ancient Porcelain and Materials from Ancient Kilns", "The Art of Packaging at the Qing Court" and "Selections from the Finest Acquisitions of the Last Fifty Years". Traveling exhibitions have also graced various provincial museums and museums abroad. In fact, since the beginning of the economic-reform era, an increasing number of exhibitions have been mounted in countries such as Britain, the USA, France, the former Soviet Union, Germany, Austria, Spain, Australia, Japan and Singapore, among others. All of them have aroused great interest and admiration and played a key part in the promotion of international understanding and cultural exchange.

The number of visitors to the Palace Museum has risen along with the growth of tourism, in the last decade reaching six to eight million a year.

General interest has been further stimulated by the Palace Museum's range of publications touching on both the architecture of its buildings and its vast cultural holdings. Published works include Famous Historical Paintings in the Palace Museum Collection, Selected Porcelain from the Palace Museum Collection, National Treasures, Palaces of the Forbidden City, Daily Life in the Forbidden City, A Collection of National Treasures, and The Complete Palace Museum Collection (in 60 volumes, of which 18 have been published so far). There are also two periodicals, The Palace Museum and The Forbidden City.

Since 1997, the Palace Museum's administration has been significantly reorganized. Where previously there were three departments covering conservation, exhibition and research, these have now been split into the departments of Antiquities; of Painting and Calligraphy; of Palace Arts; and the Exhibition, Promotion and Education Department. With substantial investment, the latest technology has been deployed by the newly established Resources and Information Center to set up the Palace Museum website. The website you are now browsing enables all, even those in distant places, to enjoy a sightseeing tour of this mysterious palace and feast their eyes on its splendid treasures.

The creation of a state-of-the-art virtual Imperial Palace is no longer just a dream.