On August 15, 2025, the collection ceremony of "WAMTA · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi" was successfully held at the Zhangheng Museum of Nanyang City Museum, and "WAMTA · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi" No. 0001 was officially added to the museum's collection. Niu Hongcheng, Director of Nanyang Museum, Huang Yingguang, Deputy Director of Nanyang Museum, Guo Yaqin, President of WAMTA, and people from all walks of life attended the event. Official media such as Nanyang Radio and Television Station, Nanyang Daily, China Ceramic Channel, and Elephant Network arrived at the scene to witness this grand event of civilization protection with everyone.

The armillary sphere was an astronomical observation instrument created by Zhang Heng, a scientist of the Eastern Han Dynasty. It is an important representative of ancient Chinese astronomical technology, and its scientific principles and precise structural design demonstrate the wisdom of the Chinese nation leading the world. It is an eternal witness to the active exploration of the mysteries of the universe by Chinese civilization.

The "WAMTA · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi" accurately restores the original appearance of this technological treasure before 1900, and through innovative forms, makes ancient technological culture tangible and perceptible, aiming to renew the broken technological context. It has officially entered the museum collection, allowing the public to directly see the magnificent achievements of ancient astronomy and technology, intuitively feel the majestic wisdom of China, actively promote the inheritance of science and technology culture, experts and scholars protect the foundation of civilization with their expertise, enterprises and institutions innovate and activate historical treasures, and the audience continues the cultural torch through observation and understanding, jointly guarding the millennium old Chinese civilization.

At 10:00 am, the museum collection ceremony officially kicked off. In his speech, Huang Yingguang, Vice President of Nanyang Museum, highly recognized the "WAMTA · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi" and believed that the pioneering restoration of the Hun Tian Yi by WAMTA has important cultural heritage significance. He first introduced the historical status of the Zhang Heng Museum in Nanyang City. As a national key cultural relic protection unit and a national education base, the museum is committed to promoting Zhang Heng's scientific spirit. Dean Huang emphasized that the armillary sphere invented by Zhang Heng was the world's first hydraulic driven astronomical instrument, leading the West for more than 1700 years. However, it has experienced disasters in modern times and is still incomplete despite repairs. He pointed out that the current country is vigorously promoting the strategy of "making cultural relics come alive" and advocating the revitalization of the country through science and education. The upgrading of Nanyang Museum to a national first-class museum is a manifestation of this concept.

Huang Yingguang, Deputy Director of Nanyang Museum

Dean Huang highly praised WAMTA ceramic restoration of the armillary sphere, believing that this innovative form has brought museum artifacts into life and revitalized dormant technological wisdom. He called on more enterprises to take the initiative to undertake the mission of cultural inheritance, like WAMTA, and activate ancient civilization through modern innovative methods. Finally, Dean Huang expressed his expectation to continue cooperation with WAMTA, allowing more cultural relics to enter thousands of households through cultural and creative products, activating traditional culture with innovative thinking, and calling on all sectors of society to jointly safeguard the Chinese cultural heritage, so that civilization can be passed down from generation to generation.

Guo Yaqin, the President of WAMTA, delivered a speech announcing the official donation of the "WAMTA · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi" with the serial number 0001 to the Zhang Heng Museum of Nanyang City Museum, jointly guarding the spark of Chinese scientific and technological civilization with everyone. She introduced that over the years, WAMTA has integrated resources in the fields of ceramics, calligraphy and painting, intangible cultural heritage, etc., continuously promoting cultural heritage protection work. It is a cultural creative transformation platform recognized by the People's Daily for people's cultural heritage and has been awarded the honor of "Public Welfare Communication Institution". WAMTA has successively completed the restoration work of important technological relics such as seismometers and armillary spheres.

Guo Yaqin, the President of WAMTA

When talking about the armillary sphere, Guo Yaqin, the president of WAMTA, emphasized that this technological treasure, which integrates the essence of astronomy, folk customs, and the Book of Changes, was once ahead of the West for thousands of years, but is facing a crisis of extinction in modern times. To this end, WAMTA, in collaboration with a team of experts from Jingdezhen Ceramic University, spent a year to complete a replica of ceramic craftsmanship, bringing this "cosmic artifact" into modern life in a brand new form. She stated that cultural protection requires the participation of the entire society and called on the public to participate in the inheritance of civilization through understanding cultural relics, sharing knowledge, and other means. In the future, WAMTA will continue to promote the revitalization and utilization of cultural heritage, allowing more cultural treasures to enter ordinary people's homes and jointly safeguard the Chinese cultural heritage.

Amidst the attention of the public, Niu Hongcheng, the director of Nanyang Museum, Guo Yaqin, the president of WAMTA, and others jointly held an official collection ceremony for the "WAMTA · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi". The "WAMTA  · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi" No. 0001 officially entered the museum's collection. Subsequently, Niu Hongcheng, the director of Nanyang Museum, and Guo Yaqin, the president of WAMTA, were interviewed by Nanyang Radio and Television Station respectively, expressing professional opinions on the cultural value and inheritance significance of the armillary sphere, and specifically explaining the key role of innovative integration in revitalizing cultural relics.

Finally, Niu Hongcheng, the director of Nanyang Museum, led the guests to visit Zhangheng Museum together. The Zhang Heng Museum of Nanyang City Museum was established in December 1984, located at the birthplace and resting place of Zhang Heng, a great scientist, inventor, and writer of the Eastern Han Dynasty in China. In May 2024, Zhang Heng Museum was merged into Nanyang City Museum, which was upgraded from a second level museum to a national first level museum, reflecting the country's emphasis and systematic support for ancient scientific and technological relics and heavy objects.

Based on the profound technological value of the armillary sphere and its current situation of being lost and broken, WAMTA invited Wang Hao, Associate Professor of the School of Design and Art at Jingdezhen Ceramic University and Director of the Ceramic Art Design Department at a national first-class professional construction site, to form an expert team in order to inherit the wisdom of scientific and technological culture and respond to the national strategy of "rejuvenating the country through science and technology" and "building a strong cultural nation". With the care and guidance of many leaders at the Nanyang Museum, WAMTA spent a year recreating the shape of the armillary sphere, reproducing this technological artifact with millennium old ceramic skills, and bringing millennium old astronomical wisdom into contemporary life. At the same time, it is hoped that through the collection, more people can truly understand the armillary sphere as a cultural relic.

The collection of "WAMTA · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi" in the Zhang Heng Museum of Nanyang City Museum showcases the museum's recognition of the rigor, authenticity, and innovative dissemination of its cultural restoration. Through innovative restoration and creative transformation, "WAMTA · Shengshi Hun Tian Yi" has revitalized astronomical instruments that have been dormant for thousands of years, and is a vivid practice of the national policy of "making cultural relics come alive". Museum cultural relics have truly entered the lives of the public.

Everyone can become a guardian, so that cultural relics are no longer just lying in books or museums, but enter public life. Everyone can truly see, touch, and feel the millennium culture in their daily lives, and truly work together to protect Chinese civilization in action. With the joint efforts of the government, academia, enterprises, and the public, the torch of Chinese civilization will be sustainably inherited.