Each culture has the ability to see the world in a very specific way

Every culture has its uniqueness. The challenge for the British Museum to be an encyclopedic one is to showcase not only the exclusiveness of cultures but the coherent interconnectivity among them, says the British Museum's director Hartwig Fischer.

"What we are looking at is the incredible diversity ... And at the same time we look at that common ground, the shared humanity, and these two things need to be brought to light and have to be made accessible," Fischer says.

The British Museum has unveiled a 10-year and beyond transformation plan which includes bringing back its Reading Room and major refurbishments of galleries in a bid to take the museum to "the next level".

"I think each culture has a possibility to see the world in a very specific way and one is not necessarily better than the other. It's different.

"What we have to do is rethink the display of our collection, to stress how cultures have grown into what they are ... The China gallery is the first big step," Fischer says.

The China and South Asia Gallery is described by Fischer as the "most imposing room" in the British Museum. Built by King Edward VII in the early 20th century, the gallery distinguishes itself with its bold and noble features with gilding, strong pillars and plaster decorations.

As part of the Museum's renovation project, the China gallery fully reopened to the public last December after a two-year refurbishment.

The museum has upgraded the floor, lighting and exhibition structure of the China gallery in a bid to improve visibility and understanding for the museum's 7 million annual visitors.

In addition to the iconic Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) blue-and-white porcelain and exquisite Tang Dynasty (618-907) tomb figurines, the gallery has also incorporated various rotating light-sensitive objects such as paintings, prints and textiles to present Chinese history from 5,000 BC.

Notably, some of the modern artworks are on display for the first time in this gallery as the museum seeks to present a glimpse of present China.