[5]On October 10, 1925, the Palace Museum was established in Beijing, with its Library Department responsible for historical documents of the Ming and Qing Dynasties.

[6] By the 1980s, the First Historical Archives became the first in China to fully sort and create preliminary catalogs for the collection.

[7] Around 1980, historical archives in China began allowing foreign researchers access.

[8] That year, the first group of American researchers was granted access to the First Historical Archives for long-term study.

The new emblem, which integrates the Chinese characters “史” (history) and “宬” (ancient archives), symbolizes the preservation, inheritance, and imprinting of history, resembling the form of traditional Chinese seals.

Most of the collection is accessible to both Chinese and foreign scholars, with only a few exceptions—related to borders, nationalities, and medicinal prescriptions—remaining restricted.