A 1,000-year-old Tripitaka, or Tibetan encyclopedia, that was retrieved from the rubble after a devastating earthquake in April, found a new home in a new museum in northwest China's Qinghai Province Thursday.

The Tripitaka, kept by the Dongtsang family in Yushu County, was recognized as the oldest and most complete version of a Tibetan encyclopedia preserved by ordinary people.

The museum, a two-story Tibetan-style building covering 456 square meters in the county seat, was built by the government at the cost of nearly 1 million yuan (US$150,000).

The Tripitaka was buried after the house where it was kept toppled in the quake of April 14. Rescuers spent four days retrieving it.

Two members of the Dongtsang family died in the quake, including the 65-year-old father and a daughter.

The rest of the family have moved into the museum, too.

The ancestors of the Dongtsang family are said to include one of the 30 generals of the legendary King Gesar. The Tripitaka, written in gold, silver, ink and vermilion, has been handed down from generation to generation.

(Xinhua News Agency September 4, 2010)