Smartphone app "The Palace Museum" allows visitors to learn more about ceramics displayed at The Imperial Palace Ceramics Museum. [Photo/Agencies]

The Palace Museum in Beijing has released a new smartphone app on April 9 that enables visitors to appreciate the 400 ceramics stored in The Imperial Palace Ceramics Museum more closely at hand, literally.

With the app "The Palace Museum", visitors can obtain more information on a certain item through scanning the QR code on the display cases. They can also get more exquisite pictures and voice guides for the item.

The 400 ceramics, most from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), were chosen from over 350,000 items stored in The Palace Museum. The items, all authenticated by experts, range from grey pottery to celadon, from white porcelain to vitreous enamel. The museum is offering 360-degree unhindered views for eight selected pieces in the collection.

Visitors can also catch a glimpse of these ceramics by following the public Wechat messaging account of "Wei Gu Gong" (Micro Imperial Palace). Followers can click on the pictures of certain ceramics to learn more about them.

Wenhua Dian (The Hall of Literally Glory), where the ceramics were being exhibited, used to be a place where papers of imperial examinations were appraised. Now it has become one of the most important and most famous exhibition halls within the Palace Museum.