Shanghai Museum opened its doors to the public for 24 hours, an unprecedented practice, on the last day of the exhibition From Botticelli to Van Gogh: Masterpieces from the National Gallery, London on May 7.

A series of activities, including one that saw actors dressed in costumes similar to those worn by characters in the paintings walking around the venue, took place from 10 in the morning till midnight.

Since opening on Jan 17, the exhibition had received more than 420,000 visitors, the most among all paid exhibitions held in museums in the Chinese mainland.

Pictures and video clips about the exhibition were widely shared on Chinese social media and viewed by more than 400 million times. Sales of exhibition merchandise also hit a record high, with about 24 million yuan ($3.47 million) worth of products sold.

According to Chu Xiaobo, director of Shanghai Museum, the exhibition was so popular that the museum extended its opening hours into the night for 50 days during the 98-day exhibition.

About 50 percent of the visitors came from other provinces, and 15 percent of them visited the showcase multiple times.