{
  "id": 7791653,
  "title": "Former director of leading Chinese museum jailed 3 years after art-selling scandal",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/former-director-of-leading-chinese-museum-jailed-3-years-after-art",
  "topic": "culture",
  "section": "Culture",
  "published": "2026-09-16T13:18:18.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Reuters Business via SCMP",
    "slug": "reuters-business-via-scmp",
    "url": "https://www.scmp.com/news/china/politics/article/3367753/former-director-leading-chinese-museum-jailed-3-years-after-art-selling-scandal"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A former Nanjing Museum director, Xu Huping, has been sentenced to three years in prison and fined 200,000 yuan for abusing his position and accepting bribes, according to Chinese state media. The scandal centers around the alleged secret sale of five donated paintings from a large collection, which were later found missing during a court-ordered inventory review. The investigation, initiated by Jiangsu provincial authorities and the National Cultural Heritage Administration, revealed that Xu had previously violated procedures by approving the transfer of paintings to a state-owned relics store in the 1990s. Additionally, a relics store employee named Zhang was also under investigation for altering the price tag of one of the paintings to facilitate its resale to a private collector. The scandal raised concerns about management issues at the Nanjing Museum, one of China's largest and most prominent museums. Authorities found over two dozen people responsible for the mismanagement and illegal sales of artifacts, with 24 still alive to face punishment. The National Cultural Heritage Administration has launched a nationwide campaign to inventory all state-owned collections, and the provincial culture and tourism department along with the Nanjing Museum have pledged to strengthen safety management of state-owned museum collections.",
  "summary": "A former director of a state-owned museum at the centre of a rare high-profile art scandal was sentenced to three years in prison, Chinese state media said on Wednesday. Xu Huping was found to have abused his position at the Nanjing Museum in eastern Jiangsu province and taken bribes, including money and property, for helping others secure projects and business collaborations. He was sentenced to…",
  "key_points": [
    "Former Nanjing Museum director Xu Huping sentenced to 3 years in prison",
    "Scandal involves secret sale of 5 donated paintings and accepting bribes",
    "Investigation reveals 24 others responsible for mismanagement and illegal sales"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "South China Morning Post",
        "title": "Former director of leading Chinese museum jailed 3 years after art-selling scandal",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/16/former-director-of-leading-chinese-museum-jailed-3-years-after-art-7792490",
        "published": "2026-09-16T13:18:18.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}