LHASA - A Tibetan tea museum will open by 2013 in Lhasa, capital of the Tibet autonomous region, to promote the rich Tibetan tea culture that dates back 1,300 years.

The China Tibetan Tea Union Company Ltd. has invested 100 million yuan ($15.67 million) to build the museum on an area of 40 mu (2.66 hectares) in a Tibetan cultural park, according to Wang Huan, company chairman.

It will be the first museum in China that focuses on Tibetan tea culture, which can be traced back to the ancient tea and horse trade route during the Tang Dynasty (618-907AD).

As tea was a major commodity, the route played an important role in promoting social and economic development in southwest China and facilitating cultural exchanges among neighboring countries.

Drinking the brick tea after it's been fermented with butter is the tradition of Tibetans and Chinese minorities in southwestern China.