A visitor photographs the stone sculptures at the National Museum of China in Beijing on Tuesday. The exhibition titled Tota Italia — Origins of a Nation kicked off in Beijing on July 10. Photo: VCG

As the flagship event of the 2022 China—Italy Year of Culture and Tourism, this exhibition showcases the origins of civilization in Italy by presenting 503 precious antiques from 26 national museums across Italy. Photo: VCG

Some masterpieces on display have never been exhibited outside Italy before, or even left their original museums, giving the exhibition an allure of rarity. Photo: VCG

The Capitoline Triad are three deities — Jupiter, Juno and Minerva — who were worshiped in ancient Rome at an elaborate temple on the city’s Capitoline Hill. Photo: VCG

The Altar to Mars and Venus in marble, usually seen in the museum of Palazzo Massimo alle Terme in Rome, Italy. Photo: VCG

The right bronze wing of a statue of the goddess of Victory, normally displayed in the Palazzo Massimo alle Terme in Rome, Italy. Photo: VCG

A visitor checks out the Campana reliefs which depict a hunting scene with the goddess of Victory at the exhibition on Thursday. Photo: VCG

The Boxer at Rest is a Hellenistic Greek bronze sculpture of a man still wearing his himantes — a type of leather hand-wrap — after a fight. It was excavated in Rome in 1885 and is normally displayed in the Palazzo Massimo alle Terme in Rome, Italy. Photo: VCG

Funerary objects from 300 BC on display at the exhibition in Beijing on Tuesday. Photo: VCG