A performer juggles fire at a molten iron fireworks show in Xinzhou Ancient City in Shanxi province. [Photo by Michael Rhys Card/China Daily]
Every culture is shaped by its history. The languages we speak, the beliefs we hold, the art we create and the buildings we leave behind are all echoes of the generations that came before us.
History tells us not only where a nation has come from, but also something about who its people are today. It reveals the ideas, values and experiences that have shaped societies over centuries.
Yet history is fragile, and time slowly erases what people build. Natural disasters, conflict and the passing of generations can leave only fragments behind. A temple may survive while the town around it disappears. A single monument may remain as a reminder of a civilization that once surrounded it.