Macerata and the Silk Road. A Delegation of Xi'An in the town of Father Matteo Ricci

20th of September, 2010

Yesterday afternoon Piazza della Libertà became a place of welcoming and encounter, in occasion of the arrival of a delegation, formed by 32 Chinese, that are travelling from Xi'An to Rome, through Venice, with the aim to revaluate the Silk Road.

The initiative is part of a project that wants to make the ancient road a World Heritage Site of the Unesco, unifying 11 Countries under the patronage of the Incomos (International Council on Monuments and Sites).

The "caravan", majorly composed by Chinese journalists and photographers, included Macerata in its itinerary in occasion of the fourth centenary of the death of Father Matteo Ricci, the illustrious missionary who is, together with Marco Polo, the most famous Italian in China.

The delegation was received by Mayor Romano Carancini and Vice-Mayor Irene Manzi in the council room.

After the speeches of President Ciaffi and director Mignini, who commemorated the importance of Matteo Ricci's work, and the speech of Edward Burman, Brainspark Plc. Councillor, the head of the Chinese delegation David Xi thanked those present and recall the importance of the figure and the work of Li Madou in his Country.

This morning the delegation left for Venice, on the eleven off-road vehicles that form the caravan.